Shloka 48
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 29 — Arjuna’s defeat of Vṛṣaka–Acalā and the neutralization of Śakuni’s māyā
स भिन्नहृदयो राजा भगदत्त: किरीटिना,किरीट्धारी अर्जुनके द्वारा हृदय विदीर्ण कर दिये जानेपर राजा भगदत्तने प्राणशून्य हो अपने धनुष-बाण त्याग दिये। उनके सिरसे पगड़ी और पट्टीका वह सुन्दर वस्त्र खिसककर गिर गया, जैसे कमलनालके ताडनसे उसका पत्ता टूटकर गिर जाता है
sa bhinnahṛdayo rājā bhagadattaḥ kirīṭinā | kirīṭadhārī arjunena hṛdayaṃ vidīryamāṇaḥ prāṇaśūnyaḥ san dhanurbāṇān tyaktavān | tasya śirasaḥ pṛṣṭhī ca paṭṭikā ca sā sundaravastrāvalī khisakya papāta, yathā kamalanālasya tāḍanena pattraṃ chinnaṃ patati ||
サンジャヤは言った。「冠を戴くアルジュナに心臓を裂かれたバガダッタ王は、命を失い、弓と矢を取り落とした。頭上のターバンと額帯—その美しい布—は滑り落ちて地に落ちた。まるで蓮の茎を打たれて葉が折れ、落ちるがごとく。」
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights impermanence and the ethical gravity of war: royal power and outward insignia (weapons, turban, headband) mean nothing once prāṇa departs. It also reflects kṣatriya-dharma’s harsh arena, where duty-bound combat leads to irreversible consequences.
Sañjaya reports that Arjuna (the diadem-wearer) mortally wounds King Bhagadatta by splitting his heart. Bhagadatta dies, drops his bow and arrows, and his head-cloths slip and fall—compared poetically to a lotus-leaf falling when its stalk is struck.