Shloka 13
भीमसेन–अलायुधयुद्धम् / Bhīmasena and Alāyudha: Night Engagement and Command Responses
त॑ निहत्य प्रलुब्धोड्यं शिखण्डी पूर्णममानस: । पाज्चाल्यै: सहित: सर्व: सेनाग्रमभिवर्तते,व्याधों-जैसा बर्ताव करनेवाला यह शिखण्डी भीष्मको मारकर मन-ही-मन उत्साहसे भरा हुआ है और समस्त पांचाल सैनिकोंके साथ सेनाके मुहानेपर खड़ा है
taṁ nihatya pralubdodyaṁ śikhaṇḍī pūrṇamānasaḥ | pāñcālyaiḥ sahitaḥ sarvaḥ senāgram abhivartate ||
Duryodhana said: “Having struck down Bhīṣma, that Śikhaṇḍin—acting like a hunter and inwardly elated—now advances to the very front of the army together with all the Pāñcāla warriors.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames Śikhaṇḍin’s role in Bhīṣma’s downfall as morally suspect—“hunter-like” and driven by a grasping impulse—highlighting how victory in war can be ethically compromised when achieved through tactics perceived as ignoble, and how triumph can inflate the mind with pride.
Duryodhana reports that after Bhīṣma has been brought down, Śikhaṇḍin—now emboldened—advances to the forefront of the battlefield along with the Pāñcāla forces, pressing the attack against the Kaurava army.