Shloka 553
शल्यपरिघातः (Śalya Under Encirclement) — Mahābhārata, Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 12
सम्प्रैषयच्छितान् पार्थ: शरानाशीविषोपमान् । नृपश्रेष्ठ) इस प्रकार संग्राममें विचरते हुए राजा शल्यको लक्ष्य करके कुन्तीकुमारने विषधर सर्पोंके समान भयंकर एवं तीखे बाण चलाये
saṃpraiṣayac chitān pārthaḥ śarān āśīviṣopamān | nṛpaśreṣṭhaṃ śalyam uddiśya raṇe sañcarantaṃ kuntīkumāraḥ tīkṣṇān bhīṣaṇān bāṇān mumoca ||
Dijo Sañjaya: Arjuna, hijo de Kuntī, fijando su puntería en el rey Śalya mientras este se movía por el campo de batalla, descargó flechas agudas y terribles—como serpientes venenosas—apremiando el combate con una resolución marcial implacable.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its starkest form: disciplined focus on one’s appointed duty in war. The serpent-like simile underscores the lethal, consequence-laden nature of violence—power must be wielded with unwavering intent, yet it inevitably carries moral weight and karmic aftermath.
Sañjaya narrates that Arjuna, seeing King Śalya moving in the battle, takes him as his target and releases a volley of keen, terrifying arrows, compared to venomous snakes for their deadly swiftness and bite.