Shloka 326
Adhyāya 40 (Book 7, Droṇa-parva): Abhimanyu’s Rapid Advance and Battlefield Disruption
छित्त्वा धनूंषि शूराणामार्जुनि: कर्णमार्दयत् । तत्पश्चात् अर्जुनकुमारने सानपर चढ़ाकर तेज किये हुए झुकी हुई गाँठवाले तीखे भल्लोंद्वारा शूरवीरोंके धनुष काटकर कर्णको सब ओरसे पीड़ा दी
sañjaya uvāca | chittvā dhanūṃṣi śūrāṇām arjuniḥ karṇam ārdhayat |
Sañjaya berkata: Setelah memutus busur para kesatria, putra Arjuna menekan Karṇa dengan keras. Lalu, dengan anak panah tajam—diasah dan dipasang pada tali busur, beruas-ruas seperti simpul—ia berulang kali menebas busur para pahlawan dan menyiksa Karṇa dari segala penjuru.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the battlefield ethic of kṣatriya-dharma: decisive action and mastery of weapons are praised in war, even when they cause suffering. It also highlights how tactical superiority—disarming by cutting bows—can be as decisive as direct killing, raising the ethical tension between duty in war and compassion.
Sañjaya describes Arjuna’s son overwhelming Karṇa: he cuts the bows of surrounding warriors and then, using sharp arrows, repeatedly severs bows and attacks from all sides, causing Karṇa intense distress amid the ongoing combat in Droṇa Parva.