Shloka 333
अभिमन्युवधः
Abhimanyu’s Fall and the Battlefield Aftermath
शरवर्षरकरुणा बालमेकमवाकिरन् । शेष महारथी धनुष कट जानेपर अभिमन्युके ऊपर बाणोंकी वर्षा करने लगे। इस प्रकार शीघ्रता करनेके अवसरपर शीघ्रता करनेवाले छः निर्दय महारथी एक रथहीन बालकपर बाणोंकी बौछार करने लगे
śaravarṣa-rakaruṇā bālam ekam avākiran | śeṣā mahārathī dhanuṣ-kaṭa-jānepara abhimanyuke upari bāṇānāṁ varṣāṁ kartum ārabdhavantaḥ | evaṁ śīghratā-karaṇe ’vasare śīghratā-kartāraḥ ṣaḍ nirdāyā mahārathinaḥ ekaṁ rathahīnaṁ bālakaṁ prati bāṇa-bauṣāraṁ pracakruḥ |
Tanpa belas kasihan mereka mengguyurkan hujan anak panah ke atas sang pemuda yang seorang diri. Setelah busur Abhimanyu tertebas, para mahāratha yang tersisa mulai menumpahkan rentetan panah kepadanya. Demikianlah, pada saat yang menuntut ketangkasan sekaligus kejernihan dharma, enam mahāratha yang kejam melepaskan badai panah terhadap seorang anak yang telah kehilangan keretanya.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical collapse that can occur in war: when many powerful warriors collectively attack a single, vulnerable opponent (here, a chariotless youth), martial skill becomes morally compromised. It implicitly contrasts prowess with dharma—strength without compassion and fairness becomes cruelty.
Sañjaya describes Abhimanyu being targeted by a concentrated barrage of arrows. Multiple elite warriors—six in number—coordinate their attack against him when he is alone and without his chariot, intensifying the sense of injustice and impending tragedy.