Shloka 83
आसजन्नस्य स्वरथं तीव्रतेजा: सुदर्शनस्येन्द्रकेतुप्रकाशौ । भुजौ शिरश्रेन्द्रसमानवीर्य- स्त्रिभि: शरैर्युगपत् संचकर्त,उस युद्धमें इन्द्रके समान पराक्रमी एवं प्रचण्ड तेजस्वी अश्वत्थामाने अपने रथके निकट आये हुए मालवराज सुदर्शनकी इन्द्रध्वजके तुल्य प्रकाशित होनेवाली दोनों भुजाओं तथा मस्तकको तीन बाणोंद्वारा एक साथ ही काट डाला
sañjaya uvāca |
āsajann asya sva-rathaṁ tīvra-tejāḥ sudarśanasya indra-ketu-prakāśau |
bhujau śiraś ca indra-samāna-vīryas tribhiḥ śarair yugapat sañcakarta ||
Sañjaya said: In that battle, Aśvatthāmā—fierce in splendor and equal to Indra in prowess—closed in by his chariot and, with three arrows at once, severed King Sudarśana’s two arms, shining like Indra’s banner, and his head.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the terrifying efficiency of martial prowess in war and invites reflection on the ethical gravity of battlefield violence: even when framed as kṣatriya valor, the act of swift killing intensifies the moral and emotional cost of the conflict.
Sañjaya reports that Aśvatthāmā closes in on King Sudarśana near the chariot and, using three arrows simultaneously, cuts off Sudarśana’s two arms and his head—an emphatic depiction of decisive, lethal combat.