Shloka 2
अभिमन्युवधः
Abhimanyu’s Fall and the Battlefield Aftermath
प्रतिविव्याध राधेयस्तावद्धिरथ त॑ पुन: । शरैराचितसर्वाड्रो बह्नशोभत भारत,भरतनन्दन! तब राधापुत्र कर्णने भी अभिमन्युको उतने ही बाणोंसे बींध डाला। उसका सारा अंग बाणोंसे व्याप्त होनेके कारण वह बड़ी शोभा पा रहा था
prativivyādha rādheyaḥ tāvaddhi rathaṁ punaḥ | śarair ācita-sarvāṅgo bahuśo bhāt(a) bhārata bharatanandana ||
Sañjaya said: Then Rādheya (Karna) pierced him in return with just as many arrows, and again struck his chariot. Covered all over with arrows, he shone repeatedly—O Bhārata, O joy of the Bharatas. The scene underscores the grim reciprocity of battle: prowess answers prowess, and the very wounds that signal suffering become, in the warrior code, marks of fierce resolve and martial splendor.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh reciprocity of battlefield ethics: in kṣatriya-dharma, valor is met with valor, and endurance under injury becomes a visible sign of resolve. It also hints at the moral tension of war, where ‘splendor’ can arise from suffering.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa (Rādheya) retaliates by piercing Abhimanyu with an equal number of arrows and again striking his chariot. Abhimanyu, his body covered with arrows, is described as shining—an epic convention portraying the warrior’s fierce radiance amid wounds.