Shloka 103

Devanagari script

शरैराशीविषाकारैज्वलज्ज्वलनसंनिभै: । तब सहदेवने संग्राममें दूसरे धनुषपर प्रत्यंचा चढ़ाकर अपने अत्यन्त तेजस्वी मामाको विषधर सर्पोंके समान भयंकर और जलती हुई आगके समान प्रज्वलित पाँच बाणोंद्वारा घायल कर दिया

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca |

śarair āśīviṣākārair jvalaj-jvalana-saṃnibhaiḥ |

tataḥ sahadevena saṅgrāme dvitīye dhanuṣi pratyāñcāṃ samāropya svaṃ atyanta-tejasvinaṃ māmakaṃ viṣadhara-sarpa-samānaiḥ bhīṣaṇaiḥ jvalitāgni-samaprabhaiḥ pañcabhir bāṇair viddham |

Translation

Sanjaya said: Then, in the thick of battle, Sahadeva—stringing the bow anew—struck my exceedingly valiant warrior with five arrows, dreadful like venomous serpents and blazing like fire.

Word by Word

शरैःwith arrows

आशीविषाकारैःhaving the form/appearance of venomous serpents

ज्वलत्blazing

ज्वलनfire

संनिभैःresembling, like

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Sahadeva

māmaka (a Kaurava-side warrior, unspecified)

arrows

bow

bowstring

serpents

fire

battlefield

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its starkest form: a warrior must act decisively in battle to uphold duty, yet the imagery of venom and fire reminds the listener that violence is inherently dreadful and morally weighty even when performed as obligation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya describes Sahadeva re-stringing (or taking up another) bow and then piercing a Kaurava-aligned fighter (‘one of ours’) with five arrows, compared to poisonous serpents and blazing fire, emphasizing the ferocity of the encounter.