Shloka 35

Devanagari script

न संदधन्‌ विमुज्चन्‌ वा मण्डलीकृतकार्मुक:

Transliteration

na sandadhan vimuñcan vā maṇḍalīkṛta-kārmukaḥ

Translation

संजय बोले— वह न तो लक्ष्य साध रहा था, न बाण छोड़ रहा था; धनुष को मण्डलाकार सँभाले हुए वह वहीं स्थिर रहा।

Word by Word

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• संदधन्: joining/placing together (an arrow), fixing (to the bow)
• संदधन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + धा
• Form: present active (शतृ), masculine, nominative, singular

• विमुञ्चन्: releasing, letting go, shooting (an arrow)
• विमुञ्चन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + मुच्
• Form: present active (शतृ), masculine, nominative, singular

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

• मण्डलीकृतकार्मुकः: having a bow bent into a circle (fully drawn/curved)
• मण्डलीकृतकार्मुकः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मण्डलीकृत-कार्मुक
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• bow (kārmuka)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in war, action is not merely mechanical; the verse highlights a moment of restraint and deliberation—an ethical pause where the warrior’s readiness is tempered by judgment about timing, duty, and the gravity of taking life.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a combatant poised to shoot: the bow is held ready in a controlled, circling guard, yet the fighter neither takes clear aim nor releases an arrow, indicating hesitation or tactical restraint at a critical instant.