Shloka 226
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 37: Sañjaya’s Account of Abhimanyu’s Precision Disruption of a Chariot Contingent
बाहू धनु: शिरश्नोव्या स्मयमानो5 भ्यपातयत् | तब अभिमन्युने मुसकराकर अश्मकपुत्रके घोड़ों, सारथि, ध्वज, भुजाओं, धनुष तथा मस्तकको भी दस बाणोंसे पृथ्वीपर काट गिराया
bāhū dhanuḥ śiraś caivā smayamāno 'bhyapātayat | tataḥ sa abhimanyunā musalakāreṇa aśmakaputrakasya hayān sārathiṃ dhvajaṃ bhujau dhanuḥ śiraś ca daśabhir bāṇaiḥ pṛthivyāṃ nikṛttya nipātitam ||
ಸಂಜಯನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ಅಭಿಮನ್ಯು ನಗುತ್ತಾ ಹತ್ತು ಬಾಣಗಳಿಂದ ಅವನ ಕುದುರೆಗಳು, ಸಾರಥಿ, ಧ್ವಜ, ಭುಜಗಳು, ಧನುಸ್ಸು ಮತ್ತು ಶಿರಸ್ಸನ್ನೂ ಕತ್ತರಿಸಿ ಭೂಮಿಗೆ ಬೀಳಿಸಿದನು।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the harsh reality of kṣatriya warfare: skill and resolve decide outcomes instantly, and symbols of power (banner, bow, chariot-team) can be dismantled in moments. It invites reflection on how martial excellence and duty operate within a tragic moral landscape where victory is inseparable from loss.
Sañjaya describes a rapid battlefield exchange culminating in Abhimanyu’s decisive strike: with ten arrows he brings down the Aśmaka prince’s horses, charioteer, banner, and then severs the warrior’s arms, bow, and head, felling them to the ground.