Mahabharata — Virata Parva, Shloka 30
Adhyāya 55: Pārtha–Rādheya Saṃvāda and Tactical Exchange
Chapter 55
कुरुसेनाशरीराणि पार्थेनैवाहतान्यपि । सेदु: पार्थहतानीव पार्थकर्मानुशासनात्
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
kurusenāśarīrāṇi pārthenaivāhatāny api |
seduḥ pārthahatānīva pārthakarmānuśāsanāt ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。クル族の戦士たちの身体は、ただパールタ（アルジュナ）に打たれただけであっても、引き裂かれ、砕かれていた。彼らはパールタの矢に討たれたかのように横たわっていた。戦場におけるパールタの働きの力と技の支配があまりに圧倒的で、その比類はただパールタ自身にしか求められなかったからである。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how disciplined mastery of action (karma) in one’s rightful role—here, a kṣatriya’s battlefield duty—can be so effective that its results appear decisive even without explicit mention of killing; excellence in action carries ethical weight when aligned with one’s responsibility.
In the Virāṭa episode’s battle scene, the narrator describes Kaurava soldiers struck by Arjuna’s arrows: their bodies are so shattered that they lie as though already dead, highlighting Arjuna’s extraordinary prowess.