Shloka 17
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 25 — Bhīma’s Disruption of Elephant Formations and Bhagadatta’s Shock Advance
तस्य नानदत: केतुमुच्चकर्त च कार्मुकम् । क्षुराभ्यां पाण्डवो ज्येष्ठस्तत उच्चुक्रुशुर्जना:,तब ज्येष्ठ पाण्डव युधिष्ठिरने दो छुरोंद्वारा गर्जना करते हुए राजा शल्यके ध्वज और धनुषको काट डाला। यह देख सब लोग हर्षसे कोलाहल कर उठे
tasya nānadataḥ ketum uccakarta ca kārmukam | kṣurābhyāṃ pāṇḍavo jyeṣṭhas tat uccukruśur janāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: As he roared aloud, the eldest Pāṇḍava (Yudhiṣṭhira) with two razor-edged arrows cut down his banner and also severed his bow. Seeing this, the warriors and onlookers raised a loud cry of exultation. In the ethical frame of the battle narrative, the act signals a strategic disabling of an opponent’s capacity to fight—striking at emblem and weapon rather than at life—while also serving as a public assertion of prowess that sways morale on the field.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights battlefield ethics and strategy: disabling an enemy by cutting the banner and bow demonstrates skill and tactical restraint, and it underscores how symbolic targets (standard, weapon) affect collective morale and the perceived momentum of dharma-yuddha.
Sañjaya reports that the eldest Pāṇḍava, using two razor-like arrows, cuts down the opponent’s banner and bow while the opponent is roaring; the surrounding warriors then erupt in a loud, joyful shout at this display of prowess.