Shloka 57

Devanagari script

तैस्तस्य तु महाराज भल्लै: संनतपर्वभि:

Transliteration

tais tasya tu mahārāja bhallaiḥ saṃnataparvabhiḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: O great king, with those broad-headed arrows—having well-bent, jointed shafts—they struck at him, pressing the assault with disciplined precision amid the fury of battle.

Word by Word

• तैः: by those
• तैः: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: masculine/neuter, instrumental, plural

• तस्य: of him / his
• तस्य: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: masculine/neuter, genitive, singular

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

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

• भल्लैः: with arrows (bhallas)
• भल्लैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: भल्ल
• Form: masculine, instrumental, plural

• संनतपर्वभिः: having bent/curved joints (i.e., barbed/knotted)
• संनतपर्वभिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संनतपर्वन्
• Form: masculine, instrumental, plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• bhalla (broad-headed arrows)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the impersonal mechanics of war: skill, weaponry, and relentless pressure drive events forward, reminding the listener that once dharma collapses into armed conflict, outcomes are shaped as much by technique and momentum as by intention.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya continues his battlefield report to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, describing how a combatant is assailed with bhalla-type arrows—well-formed, jointed-shaft missiles—indicating an intense, methodical attack in the ongoing Kurukṣetra fighting.