Shloka 26
दण्डधारवधः | The Slaying of Daṇḍadhāra
शक्ति तां प्रहतां दृष्टवा चित्रो गृह महागदाम् । प्रतिविन्ध्याय चिक्षेप रुक्मजालविभूषिताम्,उस शक्तिको नष्ट हुई देख चित्रने सोनेकी जालियोंसे विभूषित एक विशाल गदा हाथमें ले ली और उसे प्रतिविन्ध्यपर छोड़ दिया
śaktiṃ tāṃ prahatāṃ dṛṣṭvā citro gṛhya mahāgadām | prativindhyāya cikṣepa rukmajālavibhūṣitām ||
ആ ശക്തി നിഷ്ഫലമായതായി കണ്ട ചിത്റൻ സ്വർണ്ണജാലംകൊണ്ട് അലങ്കരിച്ച മഹാഗദ കൈയിൽ എടുത്ത് പ്രതിവിന്ധ്യനിലേക്കെറിഞ്ഞു.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the battlefield ethic of persistence and adaptability: when a chosen weapon fails, a warrior immediately adopts another means to continue the fight. Implicitly, it also points to the moral strain of war—human ingenuity is repeatedly turned toward destruction, even among those bound by shared lineage and dharma.
Sañjaya reports that Citro sees his śakti (spear-weapon) has been neutralized. He then takes up a huge mace decorated with golden latticework and hurls it toward Prativindhya, continuing the exchange of missiles in the Karṇa Parva battle sequence.