Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 2
विनिर्भिन्ना: शितैर्बाणैर्गदातोमरशक्तिभि: । अश्वत्थामा कृपश्चैव कृतवर्मा च सात्वत:
vinirbhinnāḥ śitair bāṇair gadātomaraśaktibhiḥ | aśvatthāmā kṛpaś caiva kṛtavarmā ca sātvatāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Pierced through by sharp arrows, and struck by maces, tomara-spears, and śakti-javelins, Aśvatthāmā, Kṛpa, and Kṛtavarmā the Sātvata were left grievously wounded.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the brutal impartiality of war: even renowned warriors are reduced to wounded bodies under a rain of weapons. Implicitly, it warns that when conflict escalates beyond restraint, suffering multiplies and dharma becomes harder to uphold amid rage and retaliation.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that key Kaurava-aligned fighters—Aśvatthāmā, Kṛpa, and Kṛtavarmā—have been grievously pierced and struck by various weapons (arrows, maces, spears, javelins) during the ongoing battle.