Shloka 15

Devanagari script

स शत्रुभुजनिर्मुक्तिर्ललाटस्थैस्त्रिभि: शरै:

Transliteration

sa śatrubhuja-nirmuktir lalāṭasthaiḥ tribhiḥ śaraiḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: With three arrows lodged in his forehead, he was freed from the enemy’s grasp—released from the crushing hold of hostile arms. The line underscores how, in the brutal economy of war, deliverance can come not through mercy but through decisive, wounding force, where survival and duty are measured amid relentless violence.

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• शत्रुभुजनिर्मुक्तिः: the release (shot) from the enemy's arm
• शत्रुभुजनिर्मुक्तिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत्रुभुजनिर्मुक्ति
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• ललाटस्थैः: by/with (those) situated on the forehead
• ललाटस्थैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ललाटस्थ
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• त्रिभिः: by/with three
• त्रिभिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective (Numeral)
• Root: त्रि
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• शरैः: by/with arrows
• शरैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शर
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• enemy (śatru)
• three arrows (śara)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the harsh moral landscape of war: ‘release’ or ‘deliverance’ may occur through injury inflicted in battle, reflecting the grim reality of kṣatriya-dharma where protection, survival, and victory often come through force rather than compassion.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a warrior being freed from an enemy’s overpowering hold, with the detail that three arrows are lodged in his forehead—an image emphasizing both the immediacy of combat and the violent means by which the situation turns.