Shloka 323
हित्वा नवगतीर्दुष्टाः स बाणानाहवे5त्यजत् | 'भीष्मजी युद्धस्थलमें दोषयुक्त आविद्ध आदि नौ गतियोंको छोड़कर केवल दसवीं गतिसे बाण छोड़ते थे। वे बाण पाण्डवपक्षके घोड़ों, रथों और हाथियोंका संहार करने लगे
hitvā navagatīr duṣṭāḥ sa bāṇān āhave 'tyajat |
Sañjaya berkata: Dengan meninggalkan sembilan cara lintasan anak panah yang cacat, dia melepaskan panah di medan perang hanya menurut lintasan kesepuluh yang sempurna. Anak-anak panah itu pun mula membinasakan kuda, kereta perang, dan gajah pihak Pāṇḍava—menunjukkan bahawa penguasaan teknik perang, apabila bersatu dengan amarah, menjadi daya pemusnah yang menyapu luas.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how disciplined technique and discernment (rejecting “flawed” methods and choosing the correct one) can greatly amplify effectiveness; ethically, it also warns that excellence in skill, when applied in war, can intensify harm and thus demands responsibility and restraint.
Sañjaya reports a warrior’s superior archery: he abandons nine defective trajectories and shoots using a tenth, effective mode; as a result, the opposing (Pandava) forces’ key war-assets—horses, chariots, and elephants—are being systematically destroyed (as elaborated in the accompanying gloss).