Shloka 48
द्रोणकर्णयोः निशि संप्रहारः — Night Engagement with Droṇa and Karṇa
द्विधा त्रिधाष्टथैकैकं छित्त्वा विव्याध तान् रथान् । तदनन्तर रणदुर्मद किरीटधारी अर्जुनने उन छोड़े गये बाणोंमेंसे प्रत्येकके दो-दो, तीन- तीन और आठ-आठ टुकड़े करके उन रथियोंको भी घायल कर दिया ।। सिंहलाड्गूलकेतुस्तु दर्शयन् वीर्यमात्मन:
dvidhā tridhāṣṭathaikaikaṃ chittvā vivyādha tān rathān | tadanantaraṃ raṇadurmadakirīṭadhārī arjunaḥ nirmuktān bāṇān pratyekaṃ dvidhā tridhā ca aṣṭadhā ca kṛtvā tān rathīn api vyathayāmāsa || siṃhalāṅgūlaketuḥ tu darśayan vīryam ātmanaḥ |
Sañjaya said: Arjuna, wearing his crown and intoxicated with the fierce momentum of battle, split the arrows that had been released—each into two, three, and even eight parts—and then struck and wounded those chariot-warriors as well. Meanwhile, Siṃhalāṅgūlaketu, displaying his own prowess, continued his martial show.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya ideal of disciplined prowess: mastery over weapons is portrayed not as random violence but as trained capability exercised within the battlefield’s code, where skill and courage become measures of martial dharma.
Sañjaya reports that Arjuna intercepts and splits incoming arrows—each into multiple fragments—and then counterattacks, wounding the opposing chariot-fighters; alongside this, Siṃhalāṅgūlaketu is described as displaying his own valor.