Shloka 85
Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)
ततो युधिष्िरो राजा त्वरमाणो महारथ:,तब महारथी राजा युधिष्ठिरने बड़ी उतावलीके साथ चार बाण मारकर कृतवमकि चारों घोड़ोंका संहार कर डाला तथा छ: तेज धारवाले भल्लोंसे कृपाचार्यको भी घायल कर दिया
tato yudhiṣṭhiro rājā tvaramāṇo mahārathaḥ | tataḥ sa mahārathī rājā yudhiṣṭhiraḥ caturbhiḥ śaraiḥ kṛtavarmāṇaṃ caturṇāṃ aśvān saṃhṛtya ṣaḍbhiś ca tīkṣṇadhārabhir bhallaiḥ kṛpācāryam api vyathayām āsa ||
Sañjaya said: Then King Yudhiṣṭhira, the great chariot-warrior, acting with urgent resolve, struck down Kṛtavarmā’s four horses with four arrows. And with six razor-edged bhalla shafts he also wounded the venerable teacher Kṛpa. In the press of battle, even the righteous king is driven to swift, decisive violence—yet the narrative keeps the ethical tension visible when elders and teachers become targets amid the necessities of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a dharma-minded ruler may be compelled by kṣatriya-duty to act swiftly and violently in war; the episode highlights the moral strain of fighting when revered elders and teachers stand on the opposing side.
Sañjaya reports that Yudhiṣṭhira, in haste, shoots four arrows to kill Kṛtavarmā’s four horses, disabling his chariot, and then strikes Kṛpācārya with six sharp bhalla arrows, wounding him in the ongoing battle.