Shloka 21
द्रोणपुत्रस्याग्नेयास्त्रप्रयोगः — अर्जुनस्य ब्राह्मास्त्रप्रतिघातः — व्यासोपदेशः
Aśvatthāmā’s Agneyāstra, Arjuna’s Brāhmāstra Counter, and Vyāsa’s Instruction
सतुतंप्रतिविव्याध त्रिभिस्तीक्ष्णैरजिद्ागै: । स्वर्णपुड्खै: शिलाधौतै: प्राणान्तकरणैर्युधि,तब धृष्टद्युम्नने रणभूमिमें सोनेके पंखवाले, शिलापर स्वच्छ किये हुए, तीन तीखे एवं प्राणान्तकारी बाणोंद्वारा द्रमसेनको घायल कर दिया
sa tutaṁ prati vivyādha tribhis tīkṣṇair ajihmagaiḥ | svarṇapuṅkhaiḥ śilādhautaiḥ prāṇāntakaraṇair yudhi ||
Sañjaya berkata—lalu, di tengah pertempuran, ia menembus Tuta dengan tiga anak panah amat tajam yang melesat lurus, batangnya diasah di batu dan berpucuk bulu emas—senjata yang merenggut nyawa di medan laga.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ruthless clarity of battlefield dharma: a warrior’s trained precision becomes an instrument of death. It invites reflection on how duty in war can demand actions that are morally troubling in ordinary life, revealing the Mahābhārata’s tension between obligation and compassion.
Sañjaya reports that a warrior (contextually, the attacker) strikes Tuta with three straight-flying, sharp, stone-polished arrows with golden fletching—described as deadly—thereby wounding him in the fight.