Shloka 56
Karṇa-parva Adhyāya 58 — Arjuna’s Arrow-Storm and Relief of Bhīmasena
रथमारुरुहे वीरो धनंजयशरार्दित: । प्रगृह्य च धनु: श्रेष्ठ पार्थ विव्याध सायकै:
ratham ārurohe vīro dhanañjaya-śarārditaḥ | pragṛhya ca dhanuḥ śreṣṭhaṃ pārtho vivyādha sāyakaiḥ, rājan |
Sañjaya dit : Ô roi, blessé par les flèches de Dhanañjaya, le vaillant guerrier remonta sur son char. Pārtha (Arjuna), saisissant son arc d’exception, le frappa de ses traits, ô roi.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya battlefield ethic: even when wounded, a warrior is expected to remount, take up arms, and respond. It implicitly shows how adherence to martial duty can perpetuate a relentless cycle of retaliation, raising ethical tension between duty (dharma) and the escalating harm of war.
Sañjaya reports that a warrior, badly hurt by Arjuna’s arrows, climbs back onto his chariot. Arjuna then takes his fine bow and pierces him again with arrows, continuing the exchange of missile combat in the ongoing Kurukṣetra battle.