Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
द्रौर्णि विव्याध समरे त्रिभिरेव शिलीमुखै: । तथेतरान् महेष्वासान द्वाभ्यां द्वाभ्यां धनंजय:
drauṇiṁ vivyādha samare tribhir eva śilīmukhaiḥ | tathetarān maheṣvāsān dvābhyāṁ dvābhyāṁ dhanañjayaḥ ||
Disse Sañjaya: No calor da batalha, Dhanañjaya (Arjuna) atingiu o filho de Droṇa, Aśvatthāmā, com três flechas agudas. Do mesmo modo, traspassou os outros grandes arqueiros, duas flechas para cada um — imagem de força disciplinada, aplicada com precisão medida em meio ao caos da guerra.
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights disciplined, proportionate action in a dharmic battlefield context: Arjuna’s controlled precision—assigning three arrows to a principal foe and two each to others—suggests mastery that avoids wasteful or reckless violence while fulfilling a warrior’s duty.
Sañjaya reports Arjuna’s performance in combat: he wounds Aśvatthāmā (Droṇa’s son) with three arrows and similarly strikes other prominent archers with two arrows each, emphasizing Arjuna’s dominance and tactical efficiency in the ongoing Kurukṣetra war.