Shloka 49
शल्यस्य पाण्डवसेनापीडनम् — Śalya’s Assault on the Pāṇḍava Host
with Omens and Bhīma’s Counter
ततो गृहीत्वा तीक्ष्णाग्रमर्धचन्द्रं सुतेजनम् । सुवेगवन्तं चिक्षेप कर्णपुत्राय संयुगे,इसके बाद तीखी धारवाले एक अत्यन्त तेज और वेगशाली अर्धचन्द्राकार बाण लेकर उसे समरांगणमें कर्णपुत्रपर चला दिया
tato gṛhītvā tīkṣṇāgram ardhacandraṃ sutejanam | suvegavantaṃ cikṣepa karṇaputrāya saṃyuge ||
Sanjaya berkata: Kemudian, setelah menggenggam anak panah berbentuk bulan sabit yang bermata setajam pisau, menyala dengan kilau yang tajam dan meluncur dengan kelajuan besar, dia pun melemparkannya di tengah pertempuran ke arah putera Karṇa.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war magnifies ethical burden: refined skill and powerful weapons, when aimed at an opponent’s offspring, show the conflict’s deepening severity and the tragic momentum of kṣatriya warfare, where duty and destruction become tightly intertwined.
In Sanjaya’s report of the battlefield, a warrior takes a sharp, crescent-shaped, highly radiant and fast-moving arrow and launches it toward Karṇa’s son during the fight, marking a decisive, aggressive strike in the ongoing duel.