Shloka 6
अभिमन्युना दुःशासनस्य ताडनम्
Abhimanyu’s Rebuke and Wounding of Duḥśāsana; Karṇa’s Counter-volley
नानानूपान् नृपसुतान् सैन्यानि विविधानि च । अलातचक्रवत् सर्वाश्वरन् बाणै: समार्पयत्,द्रोण, कर्ण, कृप, शल्य, अश्वत्थामा, भोजवंशी कृतवर्मा, बृहद्बल, दुर्योधन, भूरिश्रवा, महाबली शकुनि, अनेकानेक नरेश, राजकुमार तथा उनकी विविध प्रकारकी सेनाओंपर अभिमन्यु अलातचक्रकी भाँति चारों ओर घूमकर बाणोंका प्रहार कर रहा था
sañjaya uvāca |
nānānūpān nṛpasutān sainyāni vividhāni ca |
alātacakravat sarvāśvaran bāṇaiḥ samārpayat ||
droṇaḥ karṇaḥ kṛpaḥ śalyaḥ aśvatthāmā bhojavaṃśī kṛtavarmā bṛhadbalaḥ duryodhanaḥ bhūriśravāḥ mahābalī śakuniḥ anekāneka-nareśāḥ rājakuṃārāḥ tathā teṣāṃ vividhāni sainyāni ca | abhimanyuḥ alātacakravat sarvataḥ paribhraman bāṇaprahāraṃ cakāra ||
Sanjaya said: Abhimanyu, whirling on every side like a blazing firebrand spun in a circle, showered arrows upon princes of many lands, upon royal sons, and upon their various divisions of troops. He struck even the foremost Kaurava champions—Drona, Karna, Kripa, Shalya, Ashvatthama, Kritavarma of the Bhoja line, Brihadbala, Duryodhana, Bhurishravas, the mighty Shakuni—along with many other kings and princes and their assorted forces. The scene underscores both the ferocity of war and the solitary valor of a youth who, though surrounded, refuses to abandon his warrior-duty.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kshatriya-dharma expressed as steadfast courage under overwhelming pressure: Abhimanyu continues to fight with disciplined skill even when surrounded by renowned elders and many forces. Ethically, it also invites reflection on the asymmetry between individual valor and collective violence in war.
Sanjaya describes Abhimanyu moving rapidly in all directions, like a whirled firebrand forming a circle of flame, and striking princes, kings, and multiple troop formations with arrows—naming major Kaurava warriors among those he attacks.