Shloka 20
भूरिश्रवसः गर्हा, प्रायोपवेशः, सात्यकिकृतशिरच्छेदः
Bhūriśravas’s Censure, Prāyopaveśa, and Sātyaki’s Beheading
एकैकं पज्चभिर्विद्ध्वा पुनर्विव्याध सप्तभि: । दुर्योधनं च त्वरितो विव्याधाष्टभिराशुगै:,आपके बहुसंख्यक महारथी पुत्रोंद्वारा बाणोंसे आच्छादित किये जानेपर सात्यकिने उनमेंसे एक-एकको पहले पाँच-पाँच बाणोंसे घायल किया। फिर सात-सात बाणोंसे बींध डाला। तत्पश्चात् तुरंत ही आठ शीघ्रगामी बाणोंद्वारा दुर्योधनको भी गहरी चोट पहुँचायी
ekaikaṃ pañcabhir viddhvā punar vivyādha saptabhiḥ | duryodhanaṃ ca tvarito vivyādha aṣṭabhir āśugaiḥ ||
एकैकं पञ्चभिर्विद्ध्वा पुनर्विव्याध सप्तभिः। दुर्योधनं च त्वरितो विव्याधाष्टभिराशुगैः॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights steadfastness and tactical precision under pressure, while also reflecting how warfare tends to intensify—measured volleys (five, seven, eight) marking a deliberate escalation. Ethically, it sits within kṣatriya-dharma: courage and effectiveness in combat, even as the narrative implicitly shows the tragic momentum of violence.
Sañjaya reports that Sātyaki, surrounded and showered with arrows by Duryodhana’s many warrior sons, counterattacks methodically—piercing each son with five arrows, then striking again with seven, and finally turning to Duryodhana himself, wounding him quickly with eight swift arrows.