Shloka 15
अर्जुन–उलूपीसंवादः
Arjuna and Ulūpī: Explanation of Śānti and the Maṇipūra Resolution
ततो गाण्डीवधन्वा तु मागधेन भूशाहतः । बभौ वसनन््तसमये पलाश: पुष्पितो यथा,मगधराजके बाणोंसे अत्यन्त घायल होकर गाण्डीवधारी अर्जुन रक्तसे नहा उठे। उस समय वे वसन्त-ऋतुमें फूले हुए पलाश-वृक्षकी भाँति सुशोभित हो रहे थे
tato gāṇḍīvadhanvā tu māgadhena bhūśāhataḥ | babhau vasantasamaye palāśaḥ puṣpito yathā ||
Then Arjuna, the wielder of the Gāṇḍīva, grievously wounded by the Magadhan king, shone forth—his body drenched in blood—like a palāśa tree in the spring season when it bursts into bloom. The verse frames the warrior’s suffering not as moral collapse but as steadfast endurance amid righteous conflict, where even injury becomes a mark of unwavering resolve.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya steadfastness: even when grievously wounded, a righteous warrior maintains composure and radiance. It also shows how epic poetry transforms the harshness of battle into moral-aesthetic meaning through a simile—blood and wounds are not glorified as cruelty, but presented as the cost of duty borne with courage.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Arjuna, holding the Gāṇḍīva, has been severely struck by the Magadhan king. Covered in blood, he nevertheless appears splendid, compared to a palāśa tree flowering in spring.