Shloka 28

Śalya’s Objection to Sārathya and Duryodhana’s Conciliation (शल्यमन्यु-प्रशमनम् / Sārathyāṅgīkāra)

Devanagari script

ते सेने हन्यमाने तु ताभ्यां दिव्यैर्महाशरै: । शरपातमपाक्रम्य तस्थतुः प्रेक्षिके तदा

Transliteration

te sene hanyamāne tu tābhyāṁ divyair mahāśaraiḥ | śarapātam apākramya tasthatuḥ prekṣike tadā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: As the two armies were being struck by those two warriors’ divine, great arrows, they withdrew from the zone where the volleys were falling. Then, standing at a distance, they became mere spectators—watching the duel as a spectacle.

Word by Word

• ते: those two
• ते: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• सेने: the two armies
• सेने: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सेना
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Dual

• हन्यमाने: while being struck/being slain
• हन्यमाने: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन्
• Form: शानच् (present passive participle), Feminine, Locative, Dual, Passive

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• ताभ्याम्: by those two
• ताभ्याम्: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Dual

• दिव्यैः: divine
• दिव्यैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दिव्य
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• महाशरैः: great arrows
• महाशरैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाशर
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• शरपातम्: the fall/shower of arrows
• शरपातम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शरपात
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अपाक्रम्य: having withdrawn/moved away
• Type: Verb
• Root: अप + क्रम्
• Form: ल्यप् (absolutive/gerund), Active

• तस्थतुः: stood
• तस्थतुः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), Third, Dual, Parasmaipada

• प्रेक्षिके: as spectators (two groups/armies as onlookers)
• प्रेक्षिके: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रेक्षिक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• तदा: then/at that time
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• the two armies (Pāṇḍava and Kaurava forces, implied)
• divine great arrows (mahāśara)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how overwhelming martial power can momentarily suspend collective combat: when a duel becomes extraordinarily intense, ordinary soldiers retreat for survival and turn into spectators. Ethically, it underscores the tension between kṣatriya duty to fight and the human impulse to step back when destruction becomes indiscriminate.

What is happening in the narrative?

Two principal warriors are exchanging divine, powerful arrows. The surrounding armies, suffering from the arrow-showers, pull away from the impact zone and stand aside, watching the confrontation rather than continuing the broader engagement.