Shloka 39
अर्जुनस्य गुरुधर्मविलापः तथा शैनेयकर्णयोर्युद्धारम्भः | Arjuna’s Lament on Guru-Dharma and the Opening of the Sātyaki–Karṇa Duel
अष्टाभि: सात्यकिं विदृध्वा पुनर्विव्याध पञ्चभि: । दुःशासनश्व दशभिर्दु:सहश्न त्रिभि: शरै:ः,प्रजानाथ! तत्पश्चात् आपके सालेने दूसरा धनुष लेकर सात्यकिको पहले आठ बाण मारे। फिर पाँच बाणोंसे उन्हें घायल कर दिया। दुःशासनने दस और दुःसहने भी तीन बाण मारे
aṣṭābhiḥ sātyakiṃ viddhvā punar vivyādha pañcabhiḥ | duḥśāsanaś ca daśabhir duḥsahaś ca tribhiḥ śaraiḥ prajānātha ||
Sañjaya dit : L’ayant frappé de huit flèches, il le perça de nouveau de cinq autres. Duḥśāsana l’atteignit alors de dix, et Duḥsaha de trois. Ainsi, ô seigneur des hommes, Sātyaki fut durement pressé dans la bataille—image de la guerre où de nombreux assaillants se ruent sur un seul guerrier, éprouvant endurance et résolution au cœur de l’élan incessant d’une violence mue par l’adharma.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh reality of battlefield ethics: valor and steadfastness are tested when multiple opponents concentrate force on a single warrior. It implicitly contrasts personal endurance and duty (kṣatriya-dharma) with the dehumanizing momentum of war, where injury is multiplied through coordinated aggression.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Sātyaki is repeatedly struck by arrows: first eight, then five more by the same attacker, followed by additional volleys—ten from Duḥśāsana and three from Duḥsaha—showing Sātyaki being heavily targeted in the ongoing combat.