Shloka 37
Arjuna’s Concentrated Archery and the Rout of the Kaurava Mahārathas
Gāṇḍīva-Nirghoṣa Episode
त्रिभिस्त्रिवेणुं समरे द्वाभ्यामक्षं महारथ: । द्वादशेन तु भल्लेन चकर्तास्य ध्वजं तदा
vaiśampāyana uvāca | tribhis triveṇuṃ samare dvābhyām akṣaṃ mahārathaḥ | dvādaśena tu bhallena cakartāsya dhvajaṃ tadā |
Vaiśampāyana said: In the thick of battle, the great chariot-warrior (Arjuna) severed the enemy’s three chariot-poles with three arrows, the axle with two, and then, with the twelfth—a broad-headed bhalla—he cut down that warrior’s banner.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined power in righteous warfare: true martial excellence lies in precision and control—disabling the opponent’s means of fighting and humbling their martial pride (the banner) rather than indulging in uncontrolled violence.
During combat, Arjuna (described as a mahāratha) shoots a sequence of arrows that neatly cuts key parts of the opponent’s chariot—three structural poles, then the axle, and finally the banner—thereby crippling the chariot and asserting dominance on the battlefield.