Mahabharata 7.118.386 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 118, Shloka 386
भूरिश्रवसः गर्हा, प्रायोपवेशः, सात्यकिकृतशिरच्छेदः
Bhūriśravas’s Censure, Prāyopaveśa, and Sātyaki’s Beheading
व्यसृजत् तं॑ महाज्वालं संक्ुद्धमिव पन्नगम् । अब सात्यकिने अपने धनुषपर सुवर्णमय पंखवाले अत्यन्त तेजस्वी बाणका संधान किया
sañjaya uvāca | vyasṛjat taṁ mahājvālaṁ saṁkruddham iva pannagam |
Sañjaya dijo: Soltó aquella flecha que ardía con gran llama, semejante a una serpiente encendida por la ira. Tras encajar en su arco un dardo supremamente radiante, de plumas doradas, Sātyaki lo disparó contra Kṛtavarmā—acrecentando la tensión moral de la batalla, donde la cólera y la destreza empujan a los guerreros hacia represalias cada vez más letales.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) can shape perception and action in war: the weapon is imagined as a wrathful serpent, suggesting that unchecked fury turns human agency into something venomous and destructive, deepening the ethical burden of violence even when performed by renowned warriors.
Sañjaya describes Sātyaki fitting and releasing a fiercely blazing arrow—likened to an enraged serpent—and directing it at Kṛtavarmā, marking an escalation in their combat and the ferocity of the battlefield exchange.
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