Shloka 3936

जयद्रथवधः — The Slaying of Jayadratha

Sunset Vow and Curse-Condition

Devanagari script

बहवो लघुहस्ताश्न॒ शरवर्षरवाकिरन्‌ । युद्धमें कभी पीछे न हटनेवाले सात्यकिको अपनी सेनाओंके बीच पाकर शीघ्रतापूर्वक हाथ चलानेवाले बहुतेरे यवनोंने उनके ऊपर बाणोंकी वर्षा आरम्भ कर दी

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | bahavo laghu-hastāś ca śara-varṣa-ravākiran | yuddhe kadācid api paścān na haṭanevāle sātyakiṃ sva-senānāṃ madhye prāpya śīghratayā bahavaḥ yavanāḥ tasya upari bāṇānāṃ varṣam ārabdhavantaḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya dit : De nombreux guerriers, prompts de la main, emplirent le champ du fracas d’une pluie de flèches. Ayant aperçu Sātyaki—renommé pour ne jamais reculer au combat—debout au milieu des siens, quantité de combattants yavana se hâtèrent de le cribler de traits. La scène souligne l’implacable pression de la guerre : le courage se mesure non dans l’aisance, mais lorsqu’on est pris pour cible et qu’on refuse pourtant de plier.

Word by Word

• बहवः: many
• बहवः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• लघुहस्ताः: having swift hands (quick-handed)
• लघुहस्ताः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लघुहस्त
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• शरवर्षरवाकिरन्: they showered/scattered (with the roar of a rain of arrows)
• शरवर्षरवाकिरन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: शरवर्षरवाकिरत्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), Third, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Sātyaki
• Yavanas
• armies (senā)
• arrows (śara/bāṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma as steadfastness under danger: true courage is shown when one is singled out and pressured, yet remains unshaken and does not retreat.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a moment in the Drona Parva where many swift-handed Yavana fighters, seeing Sātyaki amid his troops, begin a concentrated volley—an intense rain of arrows directed at him.