Shloka 21
भल््लान् सुनिशितान् पीतान् रुक्मपुंखान् सुदारुणान् । ते तस्य कवचं भित्त्वा पपु: शोणितमाहवे,उन्होंने बड़ी फुर्तीसे उस स्वर्णभूषित गदाको व्यर्थ कर दिया। इस प्रकार उस गदाको निष्फल करके द्रोणाचार्यने धृष्टद्युम्नपर सुवर्णमय पंखोंसे युक्त अत्यन्त तीक्ष्ण पानीदार और भयंकर 'भल्ल'” नामक बाण चलाये। वे बाण धृष्टद्युम्मका कवच छेदकर रणक्षेत्रमें उनका रक्त पीने लगे
sañjaya uvāca |
bhallān suniśitān pītān rukmapuṅkhān sudāruṇān |
te tasya kavacaṃ bhittvā papuḥ śoṇitam āhave ||
Sañjaya said: “Then he discharged ‘bhalla’ arrows—well-honed, yellow-hued, with golden fletching, and exceedingly dreadful. Those shafts, piercing his armour, drank his blood on the battlefield.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than doctrinal: it highlights the grim reality of righteous war (kṣatriya-dharma) where skill and ferocity operate within the battlefield’s moral framework, reminding the listener that combat entails real bodily cost and irreversible consequences.
Sañjaya describes a warrior unleashing extremely sharp, gold-fletched ‘bhalla’ arrows. The arrows pierce the opponent’s armour and cause bleeding—poetically said to ‘drink’ the blood—emphasizing the intensity of the fight.