Shloka 24

Devanagari script

तानस्य विशिखांस्तीक्ष्णानन्तरिक्षे विशाम्पते

Transliteration

tān asya viśikhāṁs tīkṣṇān antarīkṣe viśāmpate

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O lord of the people, those sharp arrows of his were seen coursing through the mid-air.”

Word by Word

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अस्य: of this (man), his
• अस्य: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• विशिखान्: arrows
• विशिखान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: विशिख
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• तीक्ष्णान्: sharp
• तीक्ष्णान्: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तीक्ष्ण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अन्तरिक्षे: in the sky / mid-air
• अन्तरिक्षे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तरिक्ष
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• विशाम्: of the people/subjects
• विशाम्: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Plural

• पते: O lord
• पते: Sambodhana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पति
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by address viśāmpate)
• arrows

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse itself is descriptive rather than doctrinal: it highlights the immediacy and intensity of battle as witnessed and reported by Sañjaya. Ethically, it underscores how war manifests through swift, lethal action, inviting reflection on the gravity of kṣatriya conflict and its consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a warrior’s sharp arrows are flying through the sky—an image of active missile-exchange on the battlefield, emphasizing speed, skill, and escalating combat.