Shloka 8
पुन: पञ्चाशतेषूणां शितेन च समार्पयत् । लघुतां युयुधानस्य लाघवेन विशेषयन्,तत्पश्चात् उन्होंने युयुधानकी फुर्तीको अपनी फुर्तीसे मन्द सिद्ध करते हुए तेज धारवाले पचास बाणोंद्वारा पुनः उन्हें घायल कर दिया
punaḥ pañcāśateṣūṇāṃ śitena ca samārpayat | laghutāṃ yuyudhānasya lāghavena viśeṣayan ||
Sañjaya said: Once again he struck Yuyudhāna with fifty razor-sharp arrows. By displaying superior swiftness, he made Yuyudhāna’s famed agility seem ineffective, pressing the battle forward through sheer martial mastery rather than restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, reputation (such as famed agility) can be eclipsed by a superior display of skill; it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring ethical tension where kṣatriya prowess and duty drive escalating violence even against worthy opponents.
Sañjaya reports that an unnamed warrior (the immediate opponent in context) again wounds Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki) with fifty sharp arrows, explicitly portraying the attacker as surpassing Sātyaki’s speed with greater swiftness and dexterity.