Shloka 26
तेषामतिव्याहरतां शस्त्रवर्ष प्रमुकचताम् । प्रममाथोत्तमाड़्नि बीभत्सुर्निशितै: शरै:,वे लोग बड़ी-बड़ी डींग हाँकते हुए अस्त्र-शस्त्रोंकी वर्षा करने लगे। उस समय अर्जुनने अपने तीखे बाणोंसे उन सबके सिर उड़ा दिये
teṣām ativyāharatāṁ śastravarṣa-pramucchatām | pramamāthottamāṅgāni bībhatsur niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||
As they boasted loudly and began to shower weapons, Arjuna—terrible in battle—struck down their foremost heads with his razor-sharp arrows. The episode underscores how arrogant display and reckless violence meet swift, decisive retribution on the battlefield.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts boastful aggression with disciplined martial efficacy: prideful display (ativyāhāra) and indiscriminate weapon-rain (śastravarṣa) are met by a warrior’s precise, decisive action. Ethically, it warns that arrogance in violence invites swift consequences, while skill and resolve determine outcomes in dharmic warfare.
Opponents, shouting boasts, unleash a barrage of weapons. Arjuna (called Bībhatsu) responds by shooting keen arrows that strike down their heads—depicting a sudden turning of the fight through his superior archery.