Shloka 15
नारायणास्त्र-शमनं द्रौणि-प्रहारश्च
Pacification of the Nārāyaṇāstra and Drauni’s Renewed Assault
तत्पश्चात् नकुलने शकुनिके बाणसहित धनुषको मुट्ठी पकड़नेकी जगहसे काट दिया और तुरंत ही उसकी ध्वजाको भी काटकर रथसे भूमिपर गिरा दिया ।। विशिखेन च तीक्ष्णेन पीतेन निशितेन च । ऊरू निर्भिद्य चैकेन नकुल: पाण्डुनन्दन:
tataḥ paścāt nakulaḥ pāṇḍunandanaḥ śakuneḥ bāṇasahitaṃ dhanuṣaḥ muṣṭhi-grahaṇa-sthānāt chittvā, kṣaṇenaiva tasya dhvajaṃ ca chittvā rathāt bhūmau pātayāmāsa | viśikhena ca tīkṣṇena pītena niśitena ca, ūrū nirbhidya caikena nakulaḥ pāṇḍunandanaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Thereafter Nakula, the son of Pāṇḍu, struck Śakuni’s bow and severed it at the very grip where the hand holds it—arrow and all. In the same instant he also cut down Śakuni’s banner, casting it from the chariot to the ground. Then, with a single sharp, keen, yellow-hued arrow, Nakula pierced Śakuni’s thigh.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in the Mahābhārata’s war ethic, prowess is not merely about killing but about decisive disabling and symbolic defeat (cutting the bow and banner). It also reflects the grim moral atmosphere of Kurukṣetra: even when fighting a figure associated with deceit (Śakuni), victory is pursued through disciplined precision rather than uncontrolled rage.
Sanjaya reports that Nakula disables Śakuni by cutting his bow at the grip, then fells his chariot-banner to the ground, and finally pierces Śakuni’s thigh with a single sharp arrow—an act that both injures and publicly diminishes Śakuni’s standing on the battlefield.