Shloka 20
Arjuna–Bhīṣma Strategic Engagement and Mutual Arrow-Interdiction (भीष्मार्जुनसमागमः)
तस्मिन् प्रथमसंग्रामे भीमज्यातलनिःस्वने । तावकानां परेषां च नासीत् कश्चित् पराड्मुख:
tasmin prathama-saṅgrāme bhīma-jyā-tala-niḥsvane | tāvakānāṃ pareṣāṃ ca nāsīt kaścit parāṅmukhaḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: Dalam pertempuran pertama itu, di tengah bunyi menggerunkan tali busur yang bergetar dan dentuman cabaran (para pahlawan menepuk lengan mereka), tidak seorang pun—baik dari pihak putera-puteramu mahupun dari pihak lawan—berpaling muka daripada perang.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights steadfastness in one’s chosen duty: in the opening engagement, neither side faltered or turned away. Ethically, it frames the battlefield as a test of resolve and kṣatriya-dharma—courage and commitment, regardless of which side one serves.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that at the very start of the war, the field thundered with bowstring twangs and warriors’ challenge-cries/arm-slaps, and that no warrior among the Kauravas or the opposing forces retreated or lost heart.