Shloka 263
चिच्छेद कांश्षित समरे त्वरया कांश्षिदग्रहीत । तब भीमसेनने समरांगणमें तीखी धारवाले बाणोंसे अलायुधको क्षत-विक्षत कर दिया। अलायुधने भीमसेनके चलाये हुए कुछ बाणोंको रणभूमिमें काट दिया और कुछ बाणोंको बड़ी शीघ्रताके साथ हाथसे पकड़ लिया
sañjaya uvāca | ciccheda kāṁścit samare tvarayā kāṁścid agrahīt | tato bhīmasenena samarāṅgaṇe tīkṣṇa-dhāravalair bāṇair alāyudho kṣata-vikṣataḥ kṛtaḥ | alāyudho bhīmasenasya calitān kāṁścid bāṇān raṇabhūmau ciccheda kāṁścit ca bāhūbhyāṁ vegena jagrāha |
Sañjaya said: In the press of battle, Alayudha swiftly cut down some of the arrows and seized some of them. Then Bhimasena, on the field of combat, tore Alayudha with sharp-edged shafts, leaving him wounded and mangled. Yet Alayudha, meeting Bhima’s assault, struck down certain arrows on the battlefield and, with great speed, caught others with his hands—showing that in war, prowess and presence of mind can momentarily check even a furious onslaught, though the violence itself remains morally grim and destructive.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights that in the chaos of war, skill and alertness—cutting down threats and even catching them—can counter immediate danger; yet the scene also underscores the harsh ethical reality of battle, where victory is pursued through injury and destruction.
Sanjaya reports a duel-like exchange: Bhima wounds Alayudha with sharp arrows, while Alayudha responds by cutting some of Bhima’s arrows and swiftly catching others with his hands on the battlefield.