Shloka 38

Devanagari script

विव्याध चैनं दशभि: सम्यगस्तै: शरोत्तमै:

Transliteration

vivyādha cainaṃ daśabhiḥ samyag astaiḥ śarottamaiḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: He then pierced him with ten excellent arrows, well-aimed and true—intensifying the relentless rhythm of battle, where skill and resolve are displayed even as violence deepens the moral weight of the war.

Word by Word

• विव्याध: pierced
• विव्याध: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: व्यध्
• Form: लिट् (परोक्शभूत), परस्मैपद, प्रथम, एकवचन

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एनम्: him
• एनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (एतद्-प्रत्ययान्त सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुं, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• दशभिः: with ten
• दशभिः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: दशन्
• Form: पुं, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• सम्यक्: properly, well
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सम्यक्

• अस्तैः: with weapons/missiles
• अस्तैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्त्र
• Form: नपुं, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• शरोत्तमैः: with excellent arrows
• शरोत्तमैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शरोत्तम
• Form: पुं, तृतीया, बहुवचन

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• arrows (śara)
• missiles/weapons (astra)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the disciplined precision of a warrior’s action—skillfully executed violence within the battlefield context—inviting reflection on how competence and resolve can coexist with the heavy ethical cost of war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a combatant strikes his opponent by piercing him with ten superb, well-aimed arrows, marking a sharp intensification in the duel or exchange of missiles.