Shloka 29
शैनेयचरितम्
The Exploits of Śaineya/Sātyaki amid Encirclement
रथं नागं हयं॑ चापि पत्तिनश्न विशाम्पते । एकैकेनेषुणा संख्ये निर्बिभेद महारथ:,प्रजानाथ! महारथी द्रोणने उस युद्धस्थलमें शत्रुसेनाके प्रत्येक रथ, हाथी, अश्व और पैदल सैनिकको एक-एक बाणसे घायल कर दिया
rathaṃ nāgaṃ hayaṃ cāpi pattīṃś ca viśāṃpate | ekaikeneṣuṇā saṅkhye nirbibheda mahārathaḥ ||
Sanjaya said: O lord of the people, that great chariot-warrior, in the thick of battle, struck each enemy unit—chariots, elephants, horses, and foot-soldiers—severally with a single arrow. The verse underscores the terrifying efficiency of martial skill on the battlefield, where prowess can overwhelm multitudes even as the wider war continues to test the bounds of righteous conduct.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how extraordinary skill and focus can make a single warrior decisively effective in war; ethically, it also reminds the reader that such power, when unleashed in battle, intensifies the moral weight of the conflict and the need for dharmic restraint even amid kṣatriya duty.
Sanjaya describes a great warrior on the battlefield who, with one arrow each, strikes the opposing forces across all arms—chariots, elephants, horses, and infantry—showing a sweeping, systematic assault in the midst of the Drona Parva fighting.