Shloka 69
ते पाण्डुपज्चालगणान् निजघ्नु- मर्मच्छिद: शोणितपांसुदिग्धा: । इस प्रकार प्रेरणा मिलनेपर कर्णने सारी शक्ति लगाकर बारंबार बहुत-से बाण छोड़े। रक्त और धूलमें सने हुए वे मर्मभेदी बाण पाण्डव और पांचालोंका विनाश करने लगे ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
te pāṇḍupañcālagāṇān nijaghnuḥ marmacchidaḥ śoṇitapāṃsudigdhāḥ |
… tāv uttamau sarvadhanurdharāṇāṃ mahābalau sarvasapatnasāhau ||
Sañjaya berkata: Didorong demikian, Karṇa mengerahkan seluruh kekuatannya dan berkali-kali melepaskan banyak anak panah. Anak-anak panah yang menembusi titik-titik hayat, bersalut darah dan debu itu, mula menumbangkan gerombolan Pāṇḍava dan Pañcāla. Di tengah pembantaian itu, dua orang pemanah terunggul antara semua pemegang busur—bertenaga besar dan mampu menahan setiap pencabar—tampak menonjol (tatkala pertempuran terus mendesak).
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim moral tension of dharma in war: martial excellence and resolve can be exercised with full force, yet their immediate fruit is destruction. It invites reflection on how duty (kṣatriya conduct) and ethical cost coexist in the Mahābhārata’s battlefield narrative.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa, urged on, repeatedly shoots many arrows. These blood-and-dust-smeared, vital-piercing shafts begin to devastate the Pāṇḍava and Pañcāla forces, and the narration turns toward two outstanding archers who dominate the scene as the fight intensifies.