Shloka 23
दुःशासनवधः (Duḥśāsana-vadha) — Bhīma’s vow-fulfillment in combat
बाणान्धकारमभवत्तद् युद्ध घोरदर्शनम्
sañjaya uvāca | bāṇāndhakāram abhavat tad yuddhaṃ ghoradarśanam | tasmin samaye bhayaṅkara-dṛśyam idaṃ yuddhaṃ bāṇānām andhakāreṇa vyāptaṃ babhūva | mānīya prajānātha! yadā dharmaputraḥ yudhiṣṭhiraḥ kaurava-senāyā vadhaṃ kartum ārabdhavān, tadā tava yodhānāṃ mahān hāhākāraḥ sarvato 'bhavat ||
Disse Sañjaya: Aquela batalha, terrível de se ver, ficou envolta numa escuridão feita de flechas. Ó venerável senhor dos povos! Quando Dharmaputra Yudhiṣṭhira começou a abater o exército Kaurava, um grande clamor de aflição ergueu-se por todos os lados entre os teus guerreiros.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a righteous king like Yudhishthira, bound by kṣatriya-dharma, can become an instrument of mass destruction in war; the verse highlights how violence rapidly escalates into collective suffering, symbolized by the ‘darkness’ of arrows and the universal cry of distress.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that the battlefield is so thick with arrows it appears dark; at the moment Yudhishthira begins cutting down the Kaurava forces, Dhritarashtra’s warriors panic and a loud wail spreads everywhere.