Shloka 9
Bhīṣma’s Recollection of the Duel: Charioteer’s Fall, Brahmin Protection, and Portents after Rāma’s Collapse
स तेनाभिहतो वीरो ललाटे द्विजसत्तम: । अशोभत महाराज सशज़् इव पर्वत:,उस बाणने विप्रवर वीर परशुरामजीके ललाटमें चोट पहुँचायी। महाराज! उसके कारण वे शिखरयुक्त पर्वतके समान शोभा पाने लगे
sa tenābhihato vīro lalāṭe dvijasattamaḥ | aśobhat mahārāja saśṛṅga iva parvataḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “Struck by that arrow, the foremost of the twice-born warriors—Paraśurāma—was wounded on the forehead. O King, bearing that mark, he shone like a mountain crowned with a peak.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that in righteous combat, even the most revered person is not exempt from the tangible results of violence; yet true valor and steadfastness can make even a wound a mark of dignity rather than disgrace.
During the Bhīṣma–Paraśurāma confrontation, Paraśurāma is struck on the forehead by an arrow; Bhīṣma describes how, with that injury, he appears splendid—likened to a mountain with a prominent peak.