Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 28
Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)
तत्पश्चात् अधिक क्रोधमें भरे हुए भीमसेनने दूसरे बाणसे शल्यके सारथिका मस्तक उसके धड़से अलग कर दिया और उनके चारों घोड़ोंको भी शीघ्र ही मार डाला ।।
tatpaścād adhika-krodhena bhṛto bhīmasenas tu dvitīyena bāṇena śalyasya sārathikaṃ mastakaṃ tasya dhaḍāt pṛthak cakāra, tasya catvāro 'śvān api śīghram eva jaghāna. tam agryaṃ sarva-dhanurdharāṇām ekaṃ carantaṃ samare 'tivegam; bhīmaḥ śatena vyakirac charāṇāṃ mādrī-putraḥ sahadevas tathāiva.
Después, Bhīmasena—con la ira encendida—con una segunda flecha separó la cabeza del auriga de Śalya de su cuerpo, y con presteza dio muerte también a los cuatro caballos. Entonces Bhīma, el más señalado entre los arqueros, y Sahadeva, hijo de Mādrī, descargaron sobre Śalya una lluvia de cientos de saetas, mientras él recorría solo el campo de batalla con velocidad tremenda.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, anger and prowess can drive decisive action, yet the ethical tension remains: kṣatriya-duty demands effectiveness in battle, while the narrative also exposes the tragic cost—life is cut down swiftly, and violence escalates once combatants commit fully.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīma, enraged, beheads Śalya’s charioteer with an arrow and kills the four horses, effectively crippling Śalya’s chariot. Then Bhīma and Sahadeva together rain hundreds of arrows on Śalya as he moves alone with great speed on the battlefield.