Shloka 42
भीष्मस्य जलप्रार्थना — अर्जुनस्य पर्जन्यास्त्रप्रयोगः — दुर्योधनं प्रति सन्ध्युपदेशः
Bhīṣma’s request for water; Arjuna’s Parjanya-astra; counsel to Duryodhana on reconciliation
स बिभेद शतघ्नीं च नवभि: कड्कपत्रिभि: | मद्रराजप्रयुक्तं च शरं छित्त्वा महारथ:
sa bibheda śataghnīṃ ca navabhiḥ kaṅkapatribhiḥ | madrarāja-prayuktaṃ ca śaraṃ chittvā mahārathaḥ ||
サンジャヤは言った。「その大車戦士は、鷺の羽を付けた九本の矢でシャタグニーをも打ち砕き、さらにマドラ王の放った矢を斬り落として、なお攻防の主導を握り続けた。」この場面は、戦場におけるクシャトリヤの規律ある技量を示す—致死の力に対し、度をわきまえた反撃で応じ、熟達と警覚とが、戦の道義的重みのただ中で生き延びる術となるのである。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Within the battlefield frame, the verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma as disciplined responsiveness: even amid lethal conflict, the warrior’s duty is expressed through alertness, precision, and controlled counteraction rather than reckless aggression.
Sañjaya reports that an elite warrior destroys a formidable śataghnī with nine specially fletched arrows and then intercepts—by cutting down—the arrow shot by the king of Madra, showing superiority in the ongoing duel.