Shloka 116
भीष्मस्य शरशय्या-प्राप्तिः
Bhīṣma’s Fall to the Arrow-Bed
यमदण्डोपमां घोरां चिक्षेप परमाहवे । इस प्रकार अत्यन्त घायल होनेपर महाधनुर्धर भगदत्त अपने मुँहके दोनों कोने चाटने लगे। फिर उन्होंने उस महायुद्धमें कनक और वैदूर्य मणियोंसे विभूषित लोहेकी बनी हुई सुदृढ़ एवं यमदण्डके समान भयंकर शक्ति चलायी
yamadaṇḍopamāṃ ghorāṃ cikṣepa paramāhave | itthaṃ atyanta-ghāte sati mahādhanuḥdharaḥ bhagadattaḥ sva-mukhasya ubhayataḥ koṇau lelihaḥ | tataḥ sa tasmin mahāyuddhe kanaka-vaidūrya-maṇibhiḥ vibhūṣitāṃ loha-mayīṃ sudṛḍhāṃ ca yamadaṇḍa-samāṃ bhīṣaṇāṃ śaktiṃ mumoca |
Disse Sañjaya: Naquele choque supremo, ele arremessou uma arma terrível, semelhante ao bastão de punição de Yama. Embora gravemente ferido, o grande arqueiro Bhagadatta lambeu os dois cantos da boca—sinal feroz de que sua determinação não se quebrara. Então, naquela grande batalha, lançou uma pavorosa lança-śakti, forjada em ferro, firmíssima, adornada com ouro e gemas vaidūrya, temível como a vara de Yama.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the battlefield intensifies death-consciousness and moral peril: even when gravely wounded, a warrior may cling to wrath and pride, invoking imagery of Yama’s rod to show the nearness of death and the fearful consequences of violence.
Sañjaya describes Bhagadatta, badly injured yet unshaken, making a fierce gesture (licking the corners of his mouth) and then hurling an iron śakti-spear, richly ornamented with gold and vaidūrya gems, likened to Yama’s staff for its terror and lethality.