Shloka 9
शिखण्डिनं षड़्भिरविध्यदुग्रो धार्शद्युम्ने: स शिरश्नोच्चकर्त । तथाभिनत् सुतसोम॑ शरेण सुसंशितेनाधिरथिमीहात्मा,फिर भयंकर वीर कर्णने छः: बाणोंसे शिखण्डीको घायल कर दिया और धुृष्टद्युम्नके पुत्रका मस्तक काट डाला। साथ ही महामनस्वी अधिरथपुत्रने अत्यन्त तीखे बाणसे सुतसोमको भी क्षत-विक्षत कर दिया
sañjaya uvāca |
śikhaṇḍinaṃ ṣaḍbhir avidhyad ugro dhārṣṭadyumneḥ sa śiraś noccakarta |
tathābhinat sutasomaṃ śareṇa su-saṃśitena adhirathim īhātmā ||
Sañjaya said: The fierce Karṇa pierced Śikhaṇḍin with six arrows and then struck off the head of Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s son. In the same onrush, the high-souled son of Adhiratha also wounded Sutasoma with a keenly sharpened shaft. The verse underscores the relentless momentum of battle, where prowess and lethal skill dominate the field even as the larger questions of righteous conduct and the cost of violence continue to loom over the war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim efficiency of war: martial excellence can achieve swift results, yet it also intensifies the moral weight of battlefield actions. In the Mahābhārata’s ethical horizon, such scenes invite reflection on how kṣatriya duty, personal prowess, and the human cost of violence collide.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa strikes Śikhaṇḍin with six arrows, decapitates Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s son, and then wounds Sutasoma with a very sharp arrow—depicting Karṇa’s rapid succession of lethal feats in the ongoing Kurukṣetra battle.