Shloka 71
भीष्मधनंजयद्वैरथम्
Bhīṣma–Dhanaṃjaya Duel and the Opening Clash
शितधारैस्तथा खड्गैर्विमलैश्न परश्वधै: । शरैरन्यैश्व बहुभि: शस्त्रै्नानाविधेरपि
śitadhāraistathā khaḍgairvimalaiś ca paraśvadhaiḥ | śarair anyaiś ca bahubhiḥ śastrair nānāvidhair api ||
Sanjaya berkata: Dengan pedang yang tajam bermata, dengan kapak yang terang lagi bersih, serta dengan banyak anak panah dan pelbagai jenis senjata yang lain, para pahlawan mengheret pertempuran maju dengan semakin ganas.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse does not give a direct moral injunction; it intensifies the depiction of war’s machinery—many kinds of weapons—inviting reflection on how conflict, once unleashed, multiplies instruments of harm and carries its own momentum, a recurring ethical tension in the Mahābhārata.
Sañjaya narrates the battle scene, describing combatants employing sharp swords, gleaming axes, numerous arrows, and many other varied weapons—signaling a fierce phase of fighting in the Bhīṣma Parva.