Shloka 92
अध्याय ९ — कर्णस्य प्रहारः, योधयुग्मनियोजनम्, शैनेय-कैकेययोर्युद्धविन्यासः
स च सर्पमुखो दिव्यो महेषुप्रवरस्तदा । व्यर्थ: कथं समभवत् तन्ममाचक्ष्व संजय
sa ca sarpamukho divyo maheṣupravaraḥ tadā | vyarthaḥ kathaṁ samabhavat tan mamācakṣva sañjaya ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「そしてその時、偉大なる矢の中でも最上たる神授の『蛇面の矢』は、いかにして無効となったのか。サンジャヤよ、我に告げよ。水を孕む雲のごとく矢の雨を自ら降らせつつ、勇猛なるパーンダヴァの大車戦士が進み出たその折、いかなる因によってその至上の武器は失敗したのか。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the most formidable divine weapon can become ineffective when opposed by superior prowess, protective merit, or the larger movement of destiny; the epic repeatedly suggests that power alone does not guarantee success.
Vaiśampāyana asks Sañjaya to explain why the celebrated divine serpent-faced missile, regarded as the best among great arrows, failed at the moment when a Pāṇḍava warrior advanced while showering arrows like rain-clouds.