Shloka 38
भीष्मस्य अप्रतिमपराक्रमः — शिखण्डिपुरस्कृतः प्रहारः
Bhīṣma’s unmatched momentum and the assault with Śikhaṇḍin in the lead
पीड्यमानो बलवता पुत्रस्तव विशाम्पते । विव्याध समरे पार्थ कड्कपत्रै: शिलाशितै:,प्रजानाथ! बलवान अर्जुनके द्वारा पीड़ित होनेपर आपके पुत्रने शानपर चढ़ाकर तेज किये हुए कंक-पत्रयुक्त बाणोंद्वारा समरभूमिमें उन कुन्तीकुमारको बींध डाला
sañjaya uvāca |
pīḍyamāno balavatā putras tava viśāmpate |
vivyādha samare pārtha kaṅkapatraiḥ śilāśitaiḥ ||
prajānātha! balavān arjunakena pīḍitaḥ san tava putraḥ śāṇopacchinnaiḥ tīkṣṇīkṛtaiḥ kaṅkapatrayuktaiḥ bāṇaiḥ samara-bhūmau tān kuntīkumārān vivyādha |
Sañjaya berkata: Wahai tuan rakyat, wahai pemerintah manusia! Walau ditekan hebat oleh Arjuna yang perkasa, puteramu di tengah pertempuran tetap menikam putera Pṛthā, Pārtha, dengan anak panah berbulu seperti burung bangau dan bermata tajam yang diasah pada batu.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya impulse to respond with steadfast resistance even when overwhelmed. Ethically, it points to the tragic momentum of war: injury provokes counter-injury, and personal valor operates within a larger conflict whose consequences entangle all sides.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, although Arjuna is powerfully pressing him, Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son retaliates on the battlefield by piercing Pārtha with stone-sharpened, heron-feathered arrows.