Shloka 128
वासवी-शक्तेः प्रयोगः, घटोत्कच-वधोत्तर-शोकः, व्यासोपदेशश्च
The Vāsavī Spear’s Use, Post-Ghaṭotkaca Grief, and Vyāsa’s Counsel
ततो घटोत्कचो बाणैर्दशभिगगॉतमीसुतम् । जघानोरसि संक्रुद्धों विषाग्निप्रतिमैर्दृढै:
tato ghaṭotkaco bāṇair daśabhir agautamīsutam | jaghānorasi saṅkruddho viṣāgnipratimair dṛḍhaiḥ ||
Lalu Ghaṭotkaca, menyala oleh amarah, menghantam putra Gautamī (Aśvatthāmā) di dada dengan sepuluh anak panah yang kukuh, laksana racun dan api dalam kedahsyatannya.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) intensifies violence and leads to increasingly destructive action; it implicitly warns that when inner restraint is lost, ethical discernment in conflict is easily overwhelmed.
Sañjaya reports that Ghaṭotkaca, enraged, shoots ten powerful arrows into the chest of a warrior identified as the son of Gautamī, the arrows being described as deadly like poison and fire.