Shloka 18
Chapter 12: Arjuna’s suppression of the Saṃśaptakas and duel with Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi
कलापिनश्चापहस्ता दीर्घकेशा: प्रियंवदा: । पत्तय: सादिनक्षान्ये घोररूपपराक्रमा:
sañjaya uvāca |
kalāpinaścāpahastā dīrghakeśāḥ priyaṃvadāḥ |
pattayaḥ sādinakṣānye ghorarūpaparākramāḥ ||
tābhyāṃ muktā mahābāṇāḥ kaṅkabārhiṇavāsasaḥ |
dyotayanto diśaḥ sarvāḥ sampetuḥ svarṇabhūṣaṇāḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Raja, para pahlawan itu—setelah bersumpah sama-sama untuk menyambut maut—tidak meninggalkan satu sama lain. Dengan bulu merak di kepala, busur berkilau di tangan, rambut panjang terurai, dan tutur kata yang manis didengar, mereka mara. Para askar pejalan kaki dan penunggang kuda yang lain juga menggerunkan rupa dan ganas keperwiraannya. Daripada kedua-dua mereka dilepaskan anak-anak panah besar—bersalut emas serta berbulu burung hering dan bulu merak—yang menyala ketika melayang, seolah-olah menerangi segala penjuru sebelum jatuh.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how, in the kṣatriya world of the Mahābhārata, comradeship and resolve can become a collective vow unto death. It also hints at an ethical tension: outward refinement (pleasant speech, ornamentation) can coexist with—and even serve—the grim machinery of violence, reminding the reader to judge by intent and action rather than appearance.
Sañjaya describes a group of warriors who do not abandon each other, marked by peacock-feathers and bows. He then depicts two principal fighters releasing mighty, gold-adorned arrows with distinctive feathering, which streak through the sky as if lighting up the quarters before falling.