Shloka 20
स मे तस्मिन् रणे पूर्व प्राहरत् कड्कपत्रिभि: | षष्ट्या शतैश्ष नवभि: शराणां नतपर्वणाम्,उस रणभूमिमें उन्होंने ही पहले मेरे ऊपर गीधकी पाँखोंसे सुशोभित तथा मुड़े हुए पर्ववाले नौ सौ साठ बाणोंद्वारा प्रहार किया
sa me tasmin raṇe pūrvaṁ prāharat kaṅkapatribhiḥ | ṣaṣṭyā śataiś ca navabhiḥ śarāṇāṁ nataparvaṇām ||
Rama said: In that battle, he was the first to strike at me, showering me with nine hundred and sixty arrows—adorned with vulture-feathers and fitted with bent joints. Thus he initiated the assault, setting the tone of open warfare where initiative and restraint alike become tests of a warrior’s dharma.
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya context where the opening strike and the manner of attack matter: warfare is not mere violence but a domain governed by codes, and a warrior’s conduct—initiative, proportionality, and steadfastness—becomes a measure of dharma.
Rama recounts a prior battle episode, stating that his opponent attacked first and did so with an intense volley of 960 feather-fletched arrows with bent joints, emphasizing the ferocity and the formal commencement of combat.