Shloka 7
वृद्ध वृद्धगुणैर्युक्ते ययातिमिव नाहुषम् । विव्याध दशभिस्ती $णै: शरैर्वज़निपातनै:,सोमदत्तने भी वीर भीमसेनको सौ बाणोंसे वेधकर बदला चुकाया। इधर सात्यकिने भी अत्यन्त कुपित हो पुत्रशोकमें डूबे हुए, नहुषनन्दन ययातिकी भाँति वृद्धताके गुणोंसे युक्त बूढ़े सोमदत्तको वज्रको भी मार गिरानेवाले दस तीखे बाणोंसे बींध डाला
sañjaya uvāca | vṛddhaṃ vṛddhaguṇairyuktaṃ yayātim iva nāhuṣam | vivyādha daśabhis tīkṣṇaiḥ śarair vajranipātanaiḥ ||
Sanjaya said: Then Sātyaki, burning with grief for his son and angered beyond measure, pierced Somadatta—an aged warrior endowed with the virtues of old age, like Yayāti of the line of Nahuṣa—with ten sharp arrows, mighty as thunderbolts. In the relentless ethic of the battlefield, this act stood as a grim repayment in the cycle of retaliation, where personal sorrow was transmuted into martial resolve.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, personal grief and anger can drive action, yet the narrative frames it within kṣatriya-dharma: combat becomes a harsh arena where retaliation and duty intertwine, and even venerable age offers no immunity once one remains on the battlefield.
Sātyaki, overwhelmed by sorrow for his son and enraged, attacks Somadatta and pierces him with ten extremely powerful, sharp arrows; Somadatta is described as an aged, dignified warrior, compared to Yayāti of the Nahuṣa line.