Shloka 63
Śalya–Yudhiṣṭhira Duel and the Discharge of the Śakti (शल्यवधप्रसङ्गः)
अविध्यत् कार्मुकं चास्य क्षुरेण निरकृन्तत । अथास्य निजघानाश्रांश्वतुरो नतपर्वभि:
avidhyat kārmukaṃ cāsya kṣureṇa nirakṛntata | athāsya nijaghānāśrāṃś caturō nataparvabhiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: He struck his bow, and with a razor-edged weapon he cut it down. Then he felled four of his opponent’s horses by shooting arrows whose joints were bent—swiftly crippling the chariot’s power and turning the duel toward decisive advantage. The episode underscores how, in the brutal ethics of battlefield combat, disabling an enemy’s mobility becomes a direct means to end resistance and force the contest to its conclusion.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a harsh but central battlefield ethic in the Mahābhārata: victory often comes by disabling an opponent’s capacity to fight—here, by cutting the bow and killing the horses—rather than by mere display of prowess. It reflects the pragmatic side of kṣatriya warfare, where ending resistance swiftly can be treated as a legitimate aim within the combat code.
In the midst of chariot combat, one warrior first strikes and severs the opponent’s bow with a razor-like weapon, then shoots down four horses with specialized bent-jointed arrows, effectively immobilizing the enemy chariot and gaining a decisive tactical advantage.