Shloka 28
Ulūpī–Citravāhinī Saṃvāda: Dhanaṃjaya-patana and Prāya-threat
तस्य पार्थ: शरैंदिव्यैर्ध्वजं हेमपरिष्कृतम् । सुवर्णतालप्रतिमं क्षुरेणापाहरद् रथात्
tasya pārthaḥ śaraiḥ divyaiḥ dhvajaṃ hemapariṣkṛtam | suvarṇatālapratimaṃ kṣureṇāpāharad rathāt, rājan |
वैशम्पायन उवाच— तस्य पार्थः शरैर्दिव्यैर्ध्वजं हेमपरिष्कृतम्। सुवर्णतालप्रतिमं क्षुरेणापाहरद् रथात्॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined kṣatriya conduct in battle: decisive action aimed at disabling the enemy’s capacity to fight (standard and horses as symbols of morale and mobility), reflecting strategic restraint rather than chaotic violence.
Arjuna, in combat, uses a razor-edged divine missile to cut down the opponent’s gold-adorned banner from the chariot, and he also kills the opponent’s powerful horses, thereby crippling the chariot’s effectiveness.