Shloka 98
Śaineya’s Breakthrough and Reunion with Arjuna (शैनेयस्य समागमः)
सादितं तु रथोपस्थे दृष्टवा पार्था: शिखण्डिनम् । परिवव्रू रथैस्तूर्ण कृतवर्माणमाहवे,कुन्तीकुमारोंने शिखण्डीको रथके पिछले भागमें बेसुध होकर बैठा देख तुरंत ही कृतवर्माको रणभूमिमें अपने रथोंद्वारा चारों ओरसे घेर लिया
sāditaṁ tu rathopasthe dṛṣṭvā pārthāḥ śikhaṇḍinam | parivavrū rathais tūrṇaṁ kṛtavarmāṇam āhave ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing Śikhaṇḍin seated in a fainted, disabled state upon the rear of the chariot, the sons of Pṛthā swiftly surrounded Kṛtavarman on the battlefield with their chariots.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the battlefield reality that vigilance and swift coordination can decisively shift advantage. Ethically, it also raises the recurring Mahābhārata tension between kṣatriya pragmatism (seizing openings) and the moral weight of violence amid others’ vulnerability.
Śikhaṇḍin is seen incapacitated on the chariot. Taking this moment as an opening, the Pāṇḍavas rapidly maneuver their chariots to encircle Kṛtavarman in the midst of battle.