Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 32
Chapter 23: Śakuni Reports, Kaurava Advance, and Arjuna’s Penetration of the Host
बलेन तेन विक्रम्य वर्तमाने जनक्षये । पृष्ठत: पाण्डवानीकम भ्यध्नन्निशितै: शरै:
balena tena vikramya vartamāne janakṣaye | pṛṣṭhataḥ pāṇḍavānīkam abhyadhnan niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||
Sañjaya dit : «Rassemblant sa force et poussant en avant tandis que la tuerie faisait rage, il frappa l’armée des Pāṇḍava par l’arrière de flèches acérées, changeant la bataille en une attaque impitoyable contre ceux qu’on frappait dans le dos.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, amid mass slaughter, tactical aggression can override restraint; it implicitly invites reflection on kṣatriya conduct and the moral tension between battlefield success and fair combat.
During the height of the killing, the attackers advance with force and strike the Pandava formation from the rear using sharp arrows, intensifying confusion and casualties in the Pandava ranks.