Shloka 27
स छिन्नधन्वा संक्रुद्ध: सृक्किणी परिसंलिहन् । शक्ति जग्राह तरसा गिरीणामणि दारणीम,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 धनुष कट जानेपर क्रोधपूर्वक अपने मुँहके दोनों कोनोंको चाटते हुए भीष्मने बलपूर्वक एक शक्ति हाथमें ली, जो पर्वतोंको भी विदीर्ण करनेवाली थी
sa chinnadhanvā saṅkruddhaḥ sṛkkiṇī parisaṁlihan | śaktiṁ jagrāha tarasā girīṇām aṇi-dāraṇīm ||
Sañjaya said: When his bow had been cut, Bhīṣma—angered—licking the corners of his mouth in fierce resolve, swiftly seized a śakti (a heavy spear), a weapon said to be able to split even the peaks of mountains. The scene underscores the relentless escalation of violence in war: when one means is broken, another, more terrible means is taken up, and wrath becomes the fuel that drives further destruction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger in warfare quickly seeks new instruments of harm: when one weapon fails, wrath drives the warrior to seize a more destructive means. Ethically, it illustrates the momentum of conflict—how violence tends to intensify rather than conclude—warning that unchecked krodha (anger) sustains and amplifies suffering.
In the battle, Bhīṣma’s bow has been cut. Enraged, he licks the corners of his mouth in a fierce gesture and immediately takes up a śakti (a heavy spear/javelin), described as powerful enough to split mountains, preparing to continue fighting with another formidable weapon.