Shloka 84
Śaineya’s Breakthrough and Reunion with Arjuna (शैनेयस्य समागमः)
स तस्य सशरं चापं छित्त्वा राजन् महानसि: । अभ्यगाद् धरणीं राजंश्ष्युतं ज्योतिरिवाम्बरात्,राजन! वह महान् खड्ग कृतवर्माके बाणसहित धनुषको काटकर आकाशशसे टूटे हुए तारेके समान धरतीमें समा गया
sa tasya saśaraṃ cāpaṃ chittvā rājan mahān asiḥ | abhyagād dharaṇīṃ rājan śyutaṃ jyotir ivāmbarāt ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, that great sword cut down his bow together with the arrows. Then it fell to the earth, O King, like a star slipping from the sky.” The image underscores the swift, irreversible collapse of a warrior’s immediate power once his weapon is destroyed amid the ruthless momentum of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how quickly martial strength can vanish when its support—here, the bow and arrows—is severed. In the ethical frame of the epic, it points to the fragility of worldly power and the relentless consequences that unfold once a warrior is disarmed in the heat of dharmic conflict.
A mighty sword strikes and cuts an opponent’s bow along with the arrows. The severed weapon then drops to the ground, compared poetically to a star falling from the sky, emphasizing sudden defeat and the dramatic turn of combat.