Shloka 26
एवं स पाण्डव: क्रुद्ध आत्तमात्तं पुनः पुनः । धनुश्विच्छेद भीष्मस्य सव्यसाची परंतप:,अताडयन् रणे भीष्मं सहिता: सर्वसृञज्जया: । समस्त सूंजय वीर एक साथ संगठित हो भयंकर शतघ्नी, परिघ, फरसे, मुद्गर, मुसल, प्रास, गोफन, स्वर्णमय पंखवाले बाण, शक्ति, तोमर, कम्पन, नाराच, वत्सदन््त और भुशुण्डी आदि अस्त्र-शस्त्रोंद्वारा रणभूमिमें भीष्मको सब ओरसे पीड़ा देने लगे इस प्रकार क्रोधमें भरे हुए शत्रुसंतापी, सव्यसाची पाण्डुनन्दन अर्जुन जो-जो धनुष भीष्म लेते, उसी-उसीको काट डालते थे
sañjaya uvāca |
evaṃ sa pāṇḍavaḥ kruddha āttamāttaṃ punaḥ punaḥ |
dhanuśvicchedaṃ bhīṣmasya savyasācī parantapaḥ |
atāḍayan raṇe bhīṣmaṃ sahitāḥ sarvasṛñjayāḥ ||
Sanjaya said: Thus the Pandava, inflamed with wrath, again and again cut down Bhishma’s bow as he raised it. That left-handed master archer, Arjuna, scorcher of foes, struck Bhishma in the battle; and all the Sṛñjayas, united together, assailed Bhishma on every side with terrible weapons, seeking to harry and wear him down amid the righteous yet devastating demands of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even within dharma-yuddha, skill and resolve must be guided by purpose: Arjuna’s repeated severing of Bhishma’s bow shows disciplined strategy, while the united Sṛñjayas illustrate that righteous aims in war often require coordinated effort rather than isolated heroism.
Sanjaya describes Arjuna, enraged, repeatedly cutting Bhishma’s bow whenever Bhishma takes it up, while the Sṛñjaya warriors collectively press Bhishma from all sides with weapons, attempting to overpower and exhaust the grandsire on the battlefield.