Shloka 7
Bhagadatta’s Astra and the Fall of the Prāgjyotiṣa King (भगदत्त-वधः / वैष्णवास्त्र-प्रसङ्गः)
ततोडर्जुनः सुशर्माणं विद्धवा सप्तभिराशुगै: । ध्वजं धनुश्नास्य तथा क्षुराभ्यां समकृन्तत,तत्पश्चात् अर्जुनने सुशर्माको सात बाणोंसे घायल करके दो छुरोंद्वारा उसके ध्वज और धनुषको काट डाला
tato 'rjunaḥ suśarmāṇaṁ viddhvā saptabhir āśugaiḥ | dhvajaṁ dhanuś cāsya tathā kṣurābhyāṁ samakṛntata ||
Sañjaya dit : Alors Arjuna, après avoir percé Suśarmā de sept flèches rapides, trancha ensuite son étendard et son arc avec deux traits au tranchant de rasoir. Selon l’éthique du combat, ce geste affirme la maîtrise d’Arjuna et entrave la capacité de l’adversaire à nuire encore, faisant passer l’affrontement du simple meurtre à la neutralisation maîtrisée des moyens d’agression.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid war, power is ideally exercised with discernment: disabling an aggressor’s capacity to harm (cutting bow and banner) can be a dharmic assertion of control rather than indiscriminate slaughter, reflecting disciplined kṣatriya agency.
Arjuna strikes Susarman with seven swift arrows, then uses two razor-edged arrows to cut down Susarman’s chariot-banner and sever his bow, symbolically and practically undermining his fighting capability.