Shloka 50
Rajo-dhūli-saṃmūḍha-saṅgrāmaḥ
The Dust-Obscured Battle and Mutual Charges
ततो भीष्म: शान्तनवो नित्यं मण्डलकार्मुक:ः । मुमोच बाणान् दीप्ताग्रानहीनाशीविषानिव,उस समय शान्तनुनन्दन भीष्म अपने धनुषको खींचकर गोल बना देते और उसके द्वारा विषैले सर्पोंकी भाँति भयंकर प्रज्वलित अग्रभागवाले बाणोंकी निरन्तर वर्षा करते थे
tato bhīṣmaḥ śāntanavo nityaṁ maṇḍalakārmukaḥ | mumoca bāṇān dīptāgrān ahīn āśīviṣān iva ||
Sañjaya said: Then Bhīṣma, the son of Śāntanu, ever adept at drawing his bow in a circling sweep, kept releasing arrows with blazing tips—terrible like venomous serpents—pouring them forth without pause. The scene underscores the fearful efficiency of a great warrior whose mastery in war, though formidable, serves the larger and tragic momentum of the Kurukṣetra conflict.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the awe-inspiring power of disciplined skill in warfare, while implicitly reminding the reader that such mastery, when deployed in a fratricidal war, intensifies the tragedy of adharma-driven conflict; prowess is ethically weighty because its effects are immense.
Sañjaya describes Bhīṣma on the battlefield continuously releasing blazing, deadly arrows, compared to venomous serpents, indicating a sustained and overwhelming assault against the opposing forces.