Shloka 8
Karṇa-vadha-pratyaya: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Verification of Karṇa’s Fall (कर्णवध-प्रत्ययः)
क्रुद्धोर्जुनो अभिदुद्राव व्याक्षिपन् गाण्डिवं धनु: । इस प्रकार सेनाओंकी व्यूह-रचना हो जानेपर रणभूमिमें संशप्तकोंकी ओर देखकर क्रोधमें भरे हुए अर्जुनने गाण्डीव धनुषकी टंकार करते हुए उनपर आक्रमण किया ।। ७६ || अथ संशप्तका: पार्थमभ्यधावन् वधैषिण:
sañjaya uvāca
kruddho 'rjuno 'bhidudrāva vyākṣipan gāṇḍīvaṃ dhanuḥ |
atha saṃśaptakāḥ pārtham abhyadhāvan vadhaiṣiṇaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Enraged, Arjuna rushed forward, brandishing the Gāṇḍīva bow. When the armies had set their battle-formations on the field, he looked toward the Saṃśaptakas and, filled with wrath, made the Gāṇḍīva thunder as he attacked them. Then the Saṃśaptakas—bent on killing—charged straight at Pārtha.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger and vowed enmity can propel combatants into decisive action, intensifying the ethical stakes of warfare. It implicitly contrasts disciplined duty with passion-driven aggression, reminding readers that in dharma-yuddha the inner state (krodha vs. restraint) shapes the moral weight of action.
After the battle formations are arranged, Arjuna—angered—charges forward while wielding his bow Gāṇḍīva. In response, the Saṃśaptakas, a group bound by a fierce vow and seeking Arjuna’s death, rush to engage him directly.