Shloka 46
Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)
घण्टापताकामणिवज्जभाजं वैदूर्यचित्रां तपनीयदण्डाम् । त्वष्टा प्रयत्नान्नियमेन क्लृप्तां ब्रह्मद्विषामन्तकरीममोघाम्,उसमें छोटी-छोटी घंटियाँ और पताकाएँ लगी थीं, मणि और हीरे जड़े गये थे, वैदूर्यमणिके द्वारा उसे चित्रित किया गया था। उस शक्तिका दण्ड तपाये हुए सुवर्णका बना था। विश्वकर्माने नियमपूर्वक रहकर बड़े प्रयत्नसे उसको बनाया था। वह ब्रह्मद्रोहियोंका विनाश करनेवाली तथा लक्ष्य वेधनेमें अचूक थी
sañjaya uvāca | ghaṇṭāpatākāmaṇivajrabhājaṃ vaidūryacitrāṃ tapanīyadaṇḍām | tvaṣṭā prayatnān niyamena klṛptāṃ brahmadviṣām antakarīm amoghām ||
Sanjaya said: “It was adorned with little bells and fluttering pennons, set with gems and diamonds, and inlaid with vaidūrya. Its shaft was made of refined gold. Fashioned by Tvaṣṭṛ (the divine artisan) with disciplined care and great effort, it was unfailing—an instrument of destruction for those who are hostile to Brahman (sacred order and spiritual truth), and unerring in striking its mark.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a weapon as more than ornamented metal: it embodies disciplined creation (niyama, prayatna) and moral consequence—being ‘antakarī’ specifically for those who oppose Brahman, i.e., who act against sacred order and truth. The ethical suggestion is that power becomes decisive and ‘amogha’ when aligned with cosmic order, while hostility to that order leads to ruin.
Sanjaya is describing an extraordinary spear-like weapon (śakti) in vivid detail—its bells, banners, gem-setting, vaidūrya inlay, and golden shaft—emphasizing that it was crafted by the divine artisan Tvaṣṭṛ with strict observance and great effort, and that it never fails to hit its target and is deadly to the enemies of Brahman.