Shloka 343

Devanagari script

गभस्तिभिरिवादित्यस्तस्थौ शरमरीचिमान्‌ | जैसे सर्दीके अन्तमें सूर्यदेव धरतीका जल सोखने लगते हैं, उसी प्रकार भीष्म समस्त सैनिकोंके प्राणोंका अपहरण-सा कर रहे थे। किरणोंसे सुशोभित सूर्यदेवकी भाँति भीष्म बाणरूपी रश्मियोंसे शोभा पाते हुए वहाँ खड़े थे

Transliteration

gabhastibhir ivādityas tasthau śaramarīcimān |

Translation

Санджая сказал: Бхишма стоял там, подобный Солнцу, сияющему лучами, — его стрелы были как солнечные лучи. Как зимнее солнце под конец стужи словно высасывает влагу из земли, так Бхишма казался похищающим саму жизненную дыханье воинов, заливая поле битвы неодолимым блеском и смертоносной силой.

Word by Word

गभस्तिभिःwith rays

इवlike/as

आदित्यःthe Sun

तस्थौstood

शरarrow

मरीचिमान्radiant; possessing rays

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Āditya (the Sun)

Bhīṣma (implied by context)

arrows (śara)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how martial power, when aligned with a warrior’s duty, can appear as an impersonal natural force—like the sun—reminding the listener that in war, life and death can be swept along by a larger order (dharma, fate, and the momentum of battle), not merely personal hatred.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīṣma is standing firm on the battlefield, shining with volleys of arrows. His presence is compared to the sun whose rays dominate the sky, suggesting that Bhīṣma is cutting down warriors and draining their strength as if taking away their very lives.