Shloka 116
दशभिर्दशभिभ्भीष्ममर्दयामासुरोजसा | तब उन महारथी वीरोंने भीष्मके उन तीखे बाणोंका निवारण करके पुनः दस-दस बाणोंद्वारा भीष्मको बलपूर्वक पीड़ित किया,पाण्डवाश्व जयं लब्ध्वा परत्र च परां गतिम् । सर्वे दध्मुर्महाशड्खान् शूरा: परिघबाहव:
sañjaya uvāca |
daśabhir daśabhir bhīṣmam ardayāmāsur ojasā |
tataḥ te mahārathā vīrā bhīṣmasya tān tīkṣṇān bāṇān nivārya punaḥ daśa-daśa-bāṇaiḥ bhīṣmam balapūrvakaṃ pīḍitavantaḥ |
pāṇḍavāś ca jayaṃ labdhvā paratra ca parāṃ gatim |
sarve dadhmur mahāśaṅkhān śūrāḥ parighabāhavaḥ ||
Sanjaya said: With ten arrows each, they powerfully harassed Bhishma. Then those heroic great chariot-warriors, having checked Bhishma’s sharp shafts, again tormented him with force by volleys of ten arrows apiece. And the Pandava warriors—having gained victory and (seeking) the highest destiny hereafter—blew their great conches, those heroes whose arms were like iron clubs.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kshatriya ethos: steadfast courage under danger, disciplined counteraction (warding off arrows), and the belief that righteous valor can lead to honor in this world and a ‘higher destiny’ (parā gati) beyond it. It frames battlefield action within an ethical horizon—victory and the afterlife are both invoked as meaningful ends.
Sanjaya describes elite warriors striking Bhishma with coordinated volleys of ten arrows each. After blocking Bhishma’s sharp arrows, they renew the assault. The Pandava side, exulting in success and invoking the ideal of a higher posthumous goal, then blows their great conches as a martial signal and proclamation of spirit.