Shloka 28
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 54 — Missile-Exchange and Tactical Redirection
Arjuna, Aśvatthāman, Karṇa
स चापि वैकर्तनमर्दयित्वा साश्व॑ं ससूतं सरथं पृषत्कै: । तमाववर्ष प्रसभं किरीटी पितामहं द्रोणकृपौ च दृष्टवा
sa cāpi vaikartanam ardayitvā sāśvaṃ sasūtaṃ sarathaṃ pṛṣatkaiḥ | tam āvavarṣa prasabhaṃ kirīṭī pitāmahaṃ droṇakṛpau ca dṛṣṭvā ||
Setelah juga menghujani Karṇa (Vaikartana) dengan panah—beserta kuda, sais, dan keretanya—Arjuna yang bermahkota mulai menumpahkan serangan tanpa jeda. Namun di tengah gempuran itu, pandangannya sempat tertuju kepada sang kakek agung Bhīṣma, serta kepada Droṇa dan Kṛpa.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between decisive martial duty and moral awareness: Arjuna acts with uncompromising force against a chief opponent, yet his glance toward Bhīṣma, Droṇa, and Kṛpa signals the ethical weight of fighting revered elders within a righteous-war framework.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Arjuna (Kirīṭī) has already struck and distressed Karṇa (Vaikartana), along with his chariot-team and charioteer, and then intensifies the assault by raining arrows upon him, while noticing Bhīṣma, Droṇa, and Kṛpa nearby.