Shloka 426
भीष्मस्य शरशय्या-प्राप्तिः
Bhīṣma’s Fall to the Arrow-Bed
विव्याध निशितैस्तीक्ष्गैः कड्कपत्रैरजिद्ागै: । इस प्रकार महाबाहु कृतवर्माने महारथी धृष्टद्युम्नको गहरी चोट पहुँचायी। राजन्! तब धष्टद्युम्नने भी कंकपत्रविभूषित सीधे जानेवाले तीखे एवं पैने नौ बाणोंसे कृतवर्माको क्षत- विक्षत कर दिया
sañjaya uvāca | vivyādha niśitais tīkṣṇaiḥ kaṅkapatrair ajihmagaiḥ | tathā mahābāhuḥ kṛtavarmā mahārathī dhṛṣṭadyumnam gāḍhaṃ vyathayām āsa | rājan, tataḥ dhṛṣṭadyumno 'pi kaṅkapatravibhūṣitaiḥ ṛju-gamibhiḥ tīkṣṇaiḥ niśitaiś ca nava-bāṇaiḥ kṛtavarmāṇaṃ kṣata-vikṣataṃ cakāra |
Sañjaya berkata: Dengan anak panah yang tajam dan runcing, berbulukan bulu burung nasar dan melesat lurus, Kṛtavarmā yang berlengan perkasa—seorang mahāratha—menembus Dhṛṣṭadyumna dan menimbulkan luka yang dalam. Lalu, wahai Raja, Dhṛṣṭadyumna pun membalas: dengan sembilan panah tajam yang terbang lurus, juga berhiaskan bulu nasar, ia merobek dan melukai Kṛtavarmā.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in war: disciplined courage and proportionate response. Even amid violence, the narrative frames combat as rule-governed contest—skill, steadiness, and accountability for one’s actions—rather than uncontrolled cruelty.
Sañjaya reports a direct exchange of arrow-strikes: Kṛtavarmā grievously wounds Dhṛṣṭadyumna with sharp, straight-flying arrows; Dhṛṣṭadyumna immediately retaliates, striking Kṛtavarmā with nine keen arrows and leaving him cut and bleeding.