Shloka 15

Devanagari script

ते सर्वतः समकीर्यन्त राजन्‌ पार्थेषव: कर्णरथं विशन्त: । अवाडूमुखा: पक्षिगणा दिनान्ते विशन्ति केतार्थमिवाशु वृक्षम्‌

Transliteration

te sarvataḥ samakīryanta rājan pārtheṣavaḥ karṇarathaṁ viśantaḥ | avāḍūmukhāḥ pakṣigaṇā dinānte viśanti ketārtham ivāśu vṛkṣam, rājan |

Translation

Sañjaya dit : Ô roi, les flèches de Pārtha (Arjuna), pénétrant de toutes parts dans le char de Karṇa, se dispersaient et s’y fichaient tout autour. C’était comme des volées d’oiseaux à la fin du jour, le bec baissé, se posant en hâte sur un arbre pour y prendre gîte.

Word by Word

• {'te': 'they (those)', 'sarvataḥ': 'from all sides, everywhere', 'samakīryanta': 'were scattered, were strewn about', 'rājan': 'O king', 'pārtheṣavaḥ': 'Pārtha’s arrows (Arjuna’s shafts)', 'karṇaratham': 'Karṇa’s chariot', 'viśantaḥ': 'entering, penetrating', 'avāḍūmukhāḥ': 'with faces/beaks bent downward', 'pakṣigaṇāḥ': 'flocks of birds', 'dinānte': 'at the end of the day, at dusk', 'viśanti': 'enter, settle into', 'ketārtham': 'for the sake of a resting-place/roost (ketā = abode/settlement)', 'iva': 'like, as', 'āśu': 'quickly', 'vṛkṣam': 'tree'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• King Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Arjuna (Pārtha)
• Karṇa
• Karṇa’s chariot
• arrows
• birds
• tree

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how concentrated effort and skill manifest in action: Arjuna’s arrows strike with such inevitability that they resemble birds instinctively converging on a roost at dusk. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s tension—excellence in duty (kṣātra prowess) unfolding within a tragic war among kin.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes Arjuna’s barrage against Karṇa: arrows enter Karṇa’s chariot from all directions and end up scattered and embedded around it. He illustrates the scene with a simile of birds quickly settling into a tree at day’s end.