Shloka 49
कर्णपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः | Karṇa Parva, Chapter 15: Pāṇḍya’s Advance and Aśvatthāmā’s Counterstroke
जैसे वज्रधारी इन्द्रने पर्वतोंको विदीर्ण किया था, उसी प्रकार अर्जुनने महान् वेगशाली वज़तुल्य नाराचोंद्वारा अश्वत्थामारूपी महान् शैलको पुन: वेधना आरम्भ किया ।।
yathā vajradhara indraḥ parvatān vidārya, tathā arjuno mahāvegair vajratulyair nārācaiḥ aśvatthāmānam iva mahāśailaṃ punaḥ vedhanaṃ ārabdhavān. tam ācāryasutaḥ kruddhaḥ sāśvayantāram āśugaiḥ yuyutsur āgamat yoddhuṃ; pārthas tān acchinac charān.
Sañjaya berkata: Seperti Indra pemegang vajra dahulu membelah gunung-gunung, demikian pula Arjuna kembali mulai menembus Aśvatthāmā—laksana tebing batu besar—dengan panah nārāca yang cepat dan sekeras vajra. Murka, putra sang ācārya, Droṇa-nandana, maju hendak bertempur, menghujani Arjuna dan kusirnya Kṛṣṇa dengan anak panah; namun Pārtha menebas jatuh semuanya.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts rage-driven aggression with disciplined mastery: Aśvatthāmā attacks in anger, while Arjuna responds with controlled precision, cutting down every incoming shaft. Ethically, it highlights how skill and steadiness can restrain the destructive momentum of wrath in the midst of dharma-yuddha.
Sañjaya describes Arjuna piercing Aśvatthāmā with powerful iron arrows, likening Arjuna’s force to Indra splitting mountains. Aśvatthāmā, enraged, advances to fight Arjuna and Kṛṣṇa, firing swift arrows, but Arjuna severs all of them mid-flight.