Shloka 12
Adhyāya 104 — Śikhaṇḍin-puraskāraḥ (Śikhaṇḍin as Vanguard) and Bhīṣma’s Counter-Advance
तत: कार्ष्णिमहाराज निशितै: सायकैस्त्रिभि: । आर्ष्यशज्धिं रणे विद्ध्वा पुनर्विव्याध पठचभि:
tataḥ kārṣṇi-mahārāja niśitaiḥ sāyakais tribhiḥ | ālambuṣaṃ raṇe viddhvā punar vivyādha pañcabhiḥ ||
Disse Sañjaya: Então, ó grande rei, Abhimanyu—filho de Arjuna—atingiu Ālambuṣa no auge da batalha com três flechas afiadas e, de novo, traspassou-o com mais cinco. A cena ressalta o ímpeto incessante da guerra, em que valor e perícia se revelam por meio de ação disciplinada, mesmo quando a violência se intensifica a serviço do lado escolhido e do dever.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its battlefield form: focused execution of one’s role with courage and skill. Ethically, it reflects how duty-driven action can be intense and uncompromising in war, while still being framed as disciplined conduct within the epic’s moral universe.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Abhimanyu, Arjuna’s son, strikes the warrior Ālambuṣa with three sharp arrows and then wounds him again with five more, intensifying the combat sequence.