Shloka 69
ते पाण्डुपज्चालगणान् निजघ्नु- मर्मच्छिद: शोणितपांसुदिग्धा: । इस प्रकार प्रेरणा मिलनेपर कर्णने सारी शक्ति लगाकर बारंबार बहुत-से बाण छोड़े। रक्त और धूलमें सने हुए वे मर्मभेदी बाण पाण्डव और पांचालोंका विनाश करने लगे ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
te pāṇḍupañcālagāṇān nijaghnuḥ marmacchidaḥ śoṇitapāṃsudigdhāḥ |
… tāv uttamau sarvadhanurdharāṇāṃ mahābalau sarvasapatnasāhau ||
Dijo Sañjaya: Espoleado, Karṇa empleó toda su fuerza y una y otra vez soltó muchas flechas. Aquellos dardos, que perforaban los puntos vitales y estaban manchados de sangre y polvo, comenzaron a segar las huestes de los Pāṇḍavas y los Pañcālas. En medio de aquella carnicería, dos de los más eminentes entre todos los arqueros—de gran poder y capaces de resistir a cualquier rival—se destacaron (mientras la batalla seguía apremiando).
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim moral tension of dharma in war: martial excellence and resolve can be exercised with full force, yet their immediate fruit is destruction. It invites reflection on how duty (kṣatriya conduct) and ethical cost coexist in the Mahābhārata’s battlefield narrative.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa, urged on, repeatedly shoots many arrows. These blood-and-dust-smeared, vital-piercing shafts begin to devastate the Pāṇḍava and Pañcāla forces, and the narration turns toward two outstanding archers who dominate the scene as the fight intensifies.