Shloka 17
Bhīṣma–Karṇa Saṃvāda on the Śaraśayyā (भीष्म–कर्ण संवादः शरशय्यायाम्)
छत्रैश्न बहुधा छिन्नैर्ध्वजैश्न विनिपातितै: । (चामरैहेमदण्डैश्व॒ समास्तीर्यत मेदिनी ।) अड्कुशैरपविद्धैश्व परिस्तोमैश्व भारत,एकैकं त्रिभिरानर्च्छत् कड़ुकबर्हिणवाजितै: । उसके बाद सुशर्मा और कृपाचार्यको भी तीन-तीन बाणोंसे बींध डाला। राजेन्द्र! फिर समरांगणमें प्राग्ज्योतिषनरेश भगदत्त, सिन्धुराज जयद्रथ, चित्रसेन, विकर्ण, कृतवर्मा, दुर्मीषण तथा महारथी विन्द और अनुविन्द--इनमैंसे प्रत्येकको गीधकी पाँखसे युक्त तीन- तीन बाणोंद्वारा विशेष पीड़ा दी
sañjaya uvāca | chatraiś ca bahudhā chinnaiḥ dhvajaiś ca vinipātitaiḥ | cāmaraiḥ hemadaṇḍaiś ca samāstīryata medinī | aṅkuśair apaviddhaiś ca paristomaiś ca bhārata | ekaikaṃ tribhir ānarcat kaṅkubabarhiṇavājitaiḥ |
Sañjaya said: The earth was strewn all over with shattered parasols, fallen banners, and yak-tail fans with golden handles; with discarded elephant-goads and scattered trappings as well, O Bhārata. Then he honoured each warrior in turn with three arrows—shafts adorned with the feathers of the kaṅkuba bird—inflicting sharp pain upon them. In this grim theatre of war, prowess is displayed as a kind of ‘worship’ through disciplined marksmanship, yet it also underscores the ethical tension of the battlefield: glory and violence advancing together under the pressure of duty and rivalry.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the paradox of dharma in war: disciplined prowess and royal honorific imagery coexist with destruction. The act of ‘honouring’ with arrows suggests formal, rule-bound combat, yet the strewn insignia (parasols, banners, fans) reminds us that status and ceremony collapse under violence.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield littered with broken royal emblems and equipment. He then reports that a warrior (implied from context) pierces prominent opponents—named in the Hindi gloss—each with three feather-adorned arrows, causing them particular distress.