Shloka 15
Chapter 12: Arjuna’s suppression of the Saṃśaptakas and duel with Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi
वृता व्यूहेन महता पाण्ड्याश्नोला: सकेरला: । धृष्टद्युम्न, शिखण्डी, द्रौपदीके पुत्र, प्रभद्रक, सात्यकि, चेकितान, द्राविड सैनिकोंसहित महान् व्यूहसे घिरे हुए पाण्डय, चोल तथा केरल योद्धाओंने धावा किया ।। व्यूढोरस्का दीर्घभुजा: प्रांशव: पृथुलोचना:,वार्यमाणौ ततस्तौ हि शैनेयशरवृष्टिभि: । शैनेयस्य रथं तूर्ण छादयामासतु: शरै: सात्यकिकी बाण-वर्षासे रोके जाते हुए उन दोनों राजकुमारोंने तुरंत ही उनके रथको बाणोंसे आच्छादित कर दिया
sañjaya uvāca |
vṛtā vyūhena mahatā pāṇḍyāś ca colāḥ sakeralāḥ |
dhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ śikhaṇḍī draupadeyāḥ prabhadrakāḥ |
sātyakiś cekitāno drāviḍaiḥ sainikaiḥ saha |
mahāvyūhena parivṛtāḥ pāṇḍya-cola-keralāḥ samare prādravan ||
vyūḍhoraskā dīrghabhujāḥ prāṃśavaḥ pṛthulocanāḥ |
vāryamāṇau tataḥ tau hi śaineya-śaravṛṣṭibhiḥ |
śaineyasya rathaṃ tūrṇaṃ chādayām āsatuḥ śaraiḥ ||
Disse Sañjaya: Cercados por uma vasta formação de batalha, os guerreiros dos Pāṇḍyas, dos Colas e dos Keralas—junto com Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Śikhaṇḍī, os filhos de Draupadī, os Prabhadrakas, Sātyaki, Cekitāna e as tropas drávidas—arremeteram para a refrega. Então dois combatentes de estirpe principesca, de peito largo, braços longos, alta estatura e grandes olhos, embora contidos pelas chuvas de flechas de Śaineya (Sātyaki), cobriram rapidamente o carro de Śaineya com seus próprios dardos.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the kṣatriya ethos in wartime: duty is pursued through coordinated formations and steadfast effort even under resistance. It also implicitly warns how collective resolve and tactical skill can intensify conflict, making restraint difficult once battle momentum builds.
A large Pāṇḍava-aligned force—southern contingents and key commanders—charges while enclosed within a major formation. Two princely warriors, though impeded by Sātyaki’s arrow-showers, retaliate by rapidly blanketing Sātyaki’s chariot with arrows.