Shloka 33

भूरिश्रवसः गर्हा, प्रायोपवेशः, सात्यकिकृतशिरच्छेदः

Bhūriśravas’s Censure, Prāyopaveśa, and Sātyaki’s Beheading

Devanagari script

चतुरक्षतुरो वाहांश्षतुर्भि: परमेषुभि:

Transliteration

caturakṣaturo vāhāṃś caturbhiḥ parameṣubhiḥ

Translation

ಸಂಜಯನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ನಾಲ್ಕು ಪರಮ ಬಾಣಗಳಿಂದ ಅವನು ನಾಲ್ಕು ಕುದುರೆಗಳನ್ನು ಕೆಡವಿದನು; ಪ್ರತಿಯೊಂದನ್ನೂ ಒಂದೊಂದು ಶರದಿಂದ—ಯುದ್ಧದಲ್ಲಿ ಧರ್ಮ ಮಸುಕಾದಾಗ ಪಾಂಡಿತ್ಯವೂ ಕ್ಷಿಪ್ರ ವಿನಾಶದ ಸಾಧನವಾಗುವುದನ್ನು ತೋರಿಸುವ ನಿಖರ, ನಿರ್ದಯ ಕೌಶಲ್ಯ ಅದು.

Word by Word

चतुरःfour

अक्षतुरःaxle/axletree (axle-pins) (as read in the given text)

वाहान्horses/draught-animals

चतुर्भिःwith four

परमेषुभिःwith supreme arrows (as read in the given text)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

horses

arrows

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the terrifying efficiency of martial expertise: in war, technical brilliance can rapidly end lives. Ethically, it invites reflection on how skill, when yoked to conflict, serves destruction unless guided by restraint and dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports a battlefield feat: a warrior uses four excellent arrows to strike down four horses (the chariot’s team), likely to disable an opponent’s mobility and turn the tide in close combat.