Shloka 11
विराटसभायां पाण्डवानां प्रवेशः — Arjuna’s Encomium of Yudhiṣṭhira in Virāṭa’s Court
निहत्य नागं तु शरेण तेन वज्रोपमेनाद्रिवराम्बुदा भम् । तथाविधेनैव शरेण पार्थो दुर्योधनं वक्षसि निर्बिभेद
nihatya nāgaṃ tu śareṇa tena vajropamenādrivarāmbudābham | tathāvidhenaiva śareṇa pārtho duryodhanaṃ vakṣasi nirbibheda ||
Vaiśampāyana dijo: Tras dar muerte al gran elefante con aquella flecha—dura como un rayo y semejante a una montaña y a una masa de nubes de lluvia—Pārtha (Arjuna), con otra flecha del mismo temple, atravesó el pecho de Duryodhana. La escena subraya el ímpetu implacable de la batalla: la destreza y la resolución empujan la acción, mientras la tensión ética de la violencia y sus consecuencias permanece implícita bajo la narración heroica.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the force and inevitability of martial action once battle is joined: skill and resolve can be decisive, yet the narration also invites reflection on the ethical weight of violence and the chain of consequences it sets in motion.
After killing a powerful elephant with a thunderbolt-like arrow, Arjuna (Pārtha) immediately follows with a similar arrow and strikes Duryodhana, piercing him in the chest, as described by the narrator Vaiśampāyana.