Shloka 143
Adhyāya 6: Śibira-dvāra-sthita Bhūta-varṇana and Aśvatthāmā’s Śaraṇāgati to Mahādeva
कोशात् समुद्वरर्हाशु बिलाद् दीप्तमिवोरगम् । तब अभश्व॒त्थामाने सोनेकी मूठसे सुशोभित तथा आकाशके समान निर्मल कान्तिवाली अपनी दिव्य तलवार तुरंत ही म्यानसे बाहर निकाली
kośāt samudvṛtya hāśu bilād dīptam ivoragam | tadā aśvatthāmā śoṇekīṃ muṣṭinā suśobhitām tathā ākāśa-samāṃ nirmala-kāntimatīṃ sva-divyāṃ talavārāṃ tūrṇaṃ myānād udāharat ||
Sañjaya dit : Alors Aśvatthāmā tira d’un geste prompt son épée divine hors du fourreau—claire, sans tache, étincelante comme le ciel, au pommeau orné pour une prise sûre—comme on arracherait de son trou un serpent enflammé. L’image souligne l’irruption soudaine et périlleuse de la violence au lendemain de la nuit, lorsque la colère et la résolution étouffent toute retenue.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a stark simile—unsheathing a sword like extracting a blazing serpent—to highlight how quickly lethal intent can be unleashed. In the Sauptika context, it warns of the ethical collapse that follows when anger and vengeance override dharma, especially in acts carried out under cover of night.
Sañjaya describes Aśvatthāmā swiftly drawing his radiant, divine sword from its scabbard. The comparison to pulling a fiery serpent from a burrow signals imminent danger and foreshadows violent action in the aftermath of the Kurukṣetra war.