Shloka 53
अध्याय ५८ — वानरध्वजस्य महेन्द्रास्त्रप्रयोगः
Chapter 58: Arjuna’s Deployment of the Indra-Weapon
एवं शूरौ महेष्वासौ विसृजन्ती शिताउछरान् | एकच्छायं चक्रतुस्तावाकाशं शरवृष्टिभि:,इस प्रकार वे दोनों महान् धनुर्धर शूरवीर तीखे बाण छोड़ते हुए अपनी बाणवर्षद्वारा आकाशको एकमात्र अन्धकारमें निमग्न करने लगे
evaṁ śūrau maheṣvāsau visṛjantī śitoccharān | ekacchāyaṁ cakratus tāv ākāśaṁ śaravṛṣṭibhiḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: Thus those two heroic, great bowmen, continually releasing razor-sharp arrows, made the sky seem as though covered by a single shadow, so dense was their rain of shafts.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the awe-inspiring power of disciplined martial skill: when warriors act with mastery and resolve, their actions can transform the world around them. Implicitly, it also reminds the listener that such power in war carries ethical gravity, since excellence in violence can overwhelm even the ‘sky’ of ordinary order.
Two renowned archers are engaged in a fierce exchange, releasing sharp arrows in such volume that the sky appears covered by a single, continuous shadow—an image for an unbroken barrage of missiles.