Shloka 17
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
तमासाद्य महावेगैर्भीष्मो नवभिराशुगै: । विव्याध समरे तूर्णमार्जुनिं परवीरहा
tam āsādya mahāvegair bhīṣmo navabhir āśugaiḥ | vivyādha samare tūrṇam arjunim paravīrahā ||
Sañjaya dit : L’ayant rejoint au plus fort de la mêlée, Bhīṣma—tueur de héros ennemis—transperça promptement Arjuni (le fils d’Arjuna) de neuf flèches d’une vitesse et d’une puissance terribles. Le vers souligne l’élan inexorable de la guerre : même la vaillance renommée rencontre aussitôt une riposte disciplinée, et le champ devient l’épreuve du devoir et de la résolution guerrière, non des sentiments privés.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethic of kṣatriya warfare: decisive action, mastery of arms, and steadfastness in duty amid conflict. It also implies that reputation and lineage do not shield one from the immediate consequences of battle; skill and resolve meet skill and resolve.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīṣma closes in on his opponent and rapidly strikes him with nine swift, forceful arrows, demonstrating Bhīṣma’s dominance and the intense tempo of the Kurukṣetra fighting.