Shloka 21
तस्यार्जुनो धनुश्कछित्त्वा विव्याधैनं त्रिसप्तभि: । शरैरग्निशिखाकारे: क्रुद्धाशीविषसंनिभै:,यह देख अर्जुनने उसके धनुषको काटकर क्रोधमें भरे हुए विषधर सर्पके समान भयंकर और आगकी लपटोंके समान तेजस्वी इक्कीस बाणोंद्वारा उसे भी घायल कर दिया
tasyārjuno dhanuś chittvā vivyādha enaṃ trisaptabhiḥ | śarair agniśikhākāraiḥ kruddhāśīviṣasaṃnibhaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Arjuna cut down his bow and then struck him with twenty-one arrows—blazing like tongues of fire and as dreadful as enraged venomous serpents—showing the relentless, skillful force of battle when a warrior’s resolve hardens in wrath.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the terrifying efficiency of martial prowess when driven by anger, implicitly reminding that even righteous warfare (kṣatriya-dharma) demands inner restraint so that wrath does not become the true commander.
Sañjaya narrates that Arjuna first cuts his opponent’s bow and then wounds him with twenty-one arrows, described through vivid similes—flame-like and serpent-like—to convey their speed, heat, and deadly force.