Shloka 12
Śaineya–Bhūriśravas: Genealogy, Svayaṃvara Contest, and the Maheśvara Boon
सात्यकिस्तु ततो द्रोणं नवभिर्नतपर्वभि: । आजपघान भुशं क्रुद्धो ध्वजं च निशितै: शरै:,तदनन्तर सात्यकिने अत्यन्त कुपित हो झुकी हुई गाँठवाले नौ बाणोंद्वारा द्रोणाचार्यपर गहरा आघात किया तथा तीखे बाणोंसे उनके ध्वजको भी चोट पहुँचायी
sātyakis tu tato droṇaṃ navabhir nataparvabhiḥ | ājaghāna bhuśaṃ kruddho dhvajaṃ ca niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Then Sātyaki, inflamed with anger, struck Droṇa hard with nine arrows whose joints were bent, and with sharp shafts he also wounded Droṇa’s banner. The scene underscores how wrath intensifies the violence of battle, turning even the emblem of a warrior’s honor—the standard—into a target, as the conflict presses onward beyond restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) sharpens aggression in war: the warrior’s focus shifts from measured duty to forceful harm, even striking symbols of honor like the banner. It implicitly cautions that wrath escalates conflict and erodes restraint, a recurring ethical concern in the Mahābhārata’s war narrative.
Sātyaki, furious, shoots Droṇa with nine arrows described as nataparva (bent-jointed) and then hits Droṇa’s dhvaja (battle standard) with sharp arrows, signaling a fierce, close contest amid the Drona Parva battles.