Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 7
Śalya–Bhīma Gadā-saṃnipāta and Śalya’s Bāṇa-jāla against Yudhiṣṭhira
Book 9, Chapter 11
तस्मिंस्तथा वर्तमाने युद्धे भीरुभयावहे । पूर्वाह्न चापि सम्प्राप्ते भास्करोदयनं प्रति
tasmiṁs tathā vartamāne yuddhe bhīru-bhayāvahe | pūrvāhṇe cāpi samprāpte bhāskarodayanaṁ prati, rājan |
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Raja, ketika pertempuran itu—menggerunkan dan menambahkan ketakutan orang yang gentar—terus mengganas demikian, dan ketika waktu pagi bergerak menuju saat matahari terbit, para pahlawan musuh, terlindung daripada Arjuna yang agung dan mahir mengenai sasaran, pun bertempur dengan bala tentera tuanku, setelah menetapkan maut sendiri sebagai satu-satunya batas yang tidak akan mereka lampaui untuk berundur.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya ideal of steadfastness: warriors set death as the ultimate boundary rather than retreat, contrasting courage with the fear that overwhelms the timid. It frames battle as a moral test of resolve under terror.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that as the morning progressed, the battle intensified. Enemy fighters—shielded from Arjuna’s direct threat and skilled in marksmanship—pressed against the king’s forces, determined to fight without withdrawing except by death.
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