Shloka 71
तदनन्तर शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले अश्वत्थामाने सुन्दर पंख एवं झुकी हुई गाँठवाले दूसरे बाणसे धृष्टद्युम्नकी दोनों भौंहोंके बीचमें गहरा आघात किया ।। स पूर्वमतिविद्धश्न भशं पश्चाच्च पीडित: । ससादाथ च पाज्चाल्यो व्यपाश्रयत च ध्वजम्,पांचालराजकुमार धृष्टद्युम्न पहले ही बहुत घायल हो चुका था। फिर पीछे भी अत्यन्त पीड़ित हो वह रथकी बैठकमें धम्मसे बैठ गया और ध्वजापर अपने शरीरको टेक दिया
sañjaya uvāca |
tadanantaraṁ śatrūṇāṁ santāpa-dena āśvatthāmā sundara-pakṣaṁ jhuki-gāṇṭha-vantaṁ dvitīyena bāṇena dhṛṣṭadyumnasya ubhayor bhruvor madhye gāḍham āghātaṁ cakāra ||
sa pūrvam atividdhaḥ san bhṛśaṁ paścāc ca pīḍitaḥ |
sasāda atha ca pāñcālyaḥ vyapāśrayata ca dhvajam ||
Sañjaya said: Thereafter Aśvatthāmā—tormenter of his foes—struck Dhṛṣṭadyumna with a second arrow, beautifully feathered and firmly jointed, driving it deep between his eyebrows. Already pierced and grievously wounded, the Pāñcāla prince was further overwhelmed by pain; he sank heavily onto the chariot-seat and leaned his body against the standard.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the precariousness of worldly strength and status: even a leading warrior can be brought low in a moment. Ethically, it points to the grim inevitability of suffering once war’s cycle of harm is unleashed, urging reflection on restraint and the cost of violence within the framework of kṣatriya conflict.
Aśvatthāmā shoots Dhṛṣṭadyumna with another arrow, striking him hard between the eyebrows. Dhṛṣṭadyumna, already badly wounded, collapses onto the chariot-seat and supports himself against the chariot’s banner.