Shloka 193
भीमसेन-धृष्टद्युम्नयोर्वाक्यं
Bhīmasena and Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s Speeches on Kṣātra-Dharma
शातयामास समरे तरसा द्रौणिरुत्स्मयन् । परंतु अश्वत्थामाने मुसकराते हुए समरभूमिमें अपने ऊपर आयी हुई उस बाण-वर्षाको विषधर सर्पोके समान भयंकर बाणोंद्वारा वेगपूर्वक नष्ट कर दिया
śātayāmāsa samare tarasā drauṇir utsmayan | parantu aśvatthāmāne muskarāte hue samara-bhūmau svopari āyīṁ tāṁ bāṇa-varṣāṁ viṣadhara-sarpavat bhīṣaṇaiḥ bāṇaiḥ vegapūrvakaṁ naṣṭaṁ kṛtavān |
Sañjaya said: In the thick of battle, Droṇa’s son Aśvatthāmā, smiling with fierce confidence, swiftly shattered the arrow-storm that had descended upon him. With dreadful shafts like venomous serpents, he destroyed that onrushing barrage by sheer speed and martial mastery.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, survival often depends on speed, composure, and technical mastery; ethically, it also underscores the grim reality that such virtues can be harnessed toward destructive ends, reminding readers to distinguish martial excellence from moral rightness.
Aśvatthāmā, smiling amid combat, counters and annihilates an incoming rain of arrows aimed at him, using his own fierce, serpent-like shafts to break the barrage apart on the battlefield.