Shloka 173
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
अपश्याम महाराज द्वियमाणान् रणाजिरे | राजन! भीष्मके धनुषसे छूटे हुए बाण कवचोंमें नहीं अटकते थे (उन्हें छिन्न-भिन्न करके भीतर घुस जाते थे)। महाराज! हमने समरांगणमें ऐसे बहुत-से रथ देखे
sañjaya uvāca | apaśyāma mahārāja dvyamāṇān raṇājire | rājan! bhīṣmake dhanuṣaś ca chūṭe huye bāṇa kavacomeṃ nahīṃ aṭakate the (unheṃ chinna-bhinna karke bhītar ghusa jāte the) | mahārāja! hamne samarāṅgaṇmeṃ aise bahut-se ratha dekhe, jinake rathī aur sārathi to mār diye gaye the; parantu vegśālī ghoṛoṃ se jute hue hone ke kāraṇ ve idhar-udhar khīṃcakar le jāye jā rahe the |
Sañjaya berkata: Wahai Maharaja, aku melihat di medan perang banyak orang ditebas jatuh. Wahai Raja, anak panah yang dilepaskan dari busur Bhīṣma tidak tersangkut pada zirah; ia merobeknya dan menembus ke dalam. Wahai Maharaja, kami pun melihat banyak kereta perang yang kusir dan pejuangnya telah terbunuh, namun karena masih terpasang pada kuda-kuda yang tangkas, kereta-kereta itu terseret ke sana kemari tanpa kendali.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the brutal reality and moral cost of war: once human agency (the warrior and charioteer) is destroyed, the instruments of violence can continue moving blindly. It implicitly warns that power and martial excellence—here symbolized by Bhishma’s irresistible arrows—do not cancel the suffering and chaos that follow from battle.
Sanjaya reports to King Dhritarashtra what he witnesses at Kurukshetra: Bhishma’s arrows rip through armor rather than sticking, and many chariots, their fighters and drivers slain, are still dragged around the battlefield by swift horses, creating disorder and a grim spectacle.