Shloka 116
अध्याय १४८ — कर्णप्रभावः, धृष्टद्युम्नस्य विरथता, तथा घटोत्कच-आह्वानम्
Chapter 148: Karṇa’s Pressure, Dhṛṣṭadyumna Unhorsed, and the Summoning of Ghaṭotkaca
समाप्लवन् द्विषत्सैन्यं लोक॑ भानोरिवांशव: । इसके बाद दिव्यास्त्रोंके ज्ञाता अर्जुनरूपी सूर्यकी छिटकायी हुई बाणरूपी किरणोंने शत्रुओंकी सेनाको उसी प्रकार आप्लावित कर दिया, जैसे सूर्यकी रश्मियाँ सारे जगत्को व्याप्त कर लेती हैं,सकुण्डलं सिन्धुपते: प्रभगजजनसुतानुज । उत्सड़े पातयस्वास्य वृद्धक्षत्रस्थ भारत “अतः शत्रुसूदन! तुम अद्भुत कर्म करनेवाले किसी भयंकर दिव्यास्त्रके द्वारा इस महासमरमें सिंधुराज जयद्रथका कुण्डलसहित मस्तक काटकर उसे इस वृद्धक्षत्रकी गोदमें गिरा दो। भारत! तुम भीमसेनके छोटे भाई हो (अतः सब कुछ कर सकते हो)
samāplavan dviṣat-sainyaṁ lokaṁ bhānor ivāṁśavaḥ | tato divyāstravid arjuna-sūrya-vikīrṇā iṣu-raśmayaḥ śatrūṇāṁ senām āplāvayan yathā sūrya-raśmayo jagat vyāpnuvanti | ataḥ śatru-sūdana tvam adbhuta-karmaṇā kenacid ghorena divyāstreṇa mahā-samare sindhu-pateḥ jayadrathasya sa-kuṇḍalaṁ śiraś chittvā etasya vṛddha-kṣatrasya kroḍe pātaya | bhārata tvaṁ bhīmasenasya anujaḥ (ataḥ sarvaṁ kartuṁ śaknoṣi) |
Sanjaya said: Arjuna’s arrows, like the rays of the sun, flooded and overwhelmed the hostile army, just as sunlight spreads across the whole world. Therefore, O slayer of foes, perform a wondrous deed in this great battle: by some dreadful divine weapon, cut off the head of Jayadratha, lord of Sindhu, together with his earrings, and make it fall into the lap of old Vṛddhakṣatra. O Bhārata—since you are Bhīmasena’s younger brother—you are capable of accomplishing it.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights how extraordinary power (divine weapons, heroic skill) is directed by a moral and narrative purpose: the fulfillment of a vowed duty in war, where actions carry precise consequences—here, ensuring Jayadratha’s death occurs in a way that also triggers the destined outcome for his father, Vṛddhakṣatra.
Sanjaya describes Arjuna overwhelming the enemy host with a rain of arrows. Then the focus turns to the crucial objective of the day’s battle: using a terrible divine weapon to sever Jayadratha’s head (still adorned with earrings) and cause it to fall into Vṛddhakṣatra’s lap—an outcome tied to earlier boons/curses and the tactical-moral urgency of Arjuna’s vow.