Shloka 31

Chapter 136: Pandava Counter-Encirclement and the Vāyavya-Astra Disruption

Devanagari script

स निर्भिन्नो रणे भीमो नाराचैर्मर्मभेदिभि:

Transliteration

sa nirbhinno raṇe bhīmo nārācair marmabhedibhiḥ

Translation

स निर्भिन्नो रणे भीमो नाराचैर्मर्मभेदिभिः॥

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• निर्भिन्नः: pierced, split open
• निर्भिन्नः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्भिन्न (नि + √भिद्, past passive participle)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• रणे: in battle
• रणे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रण
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• भीमः: Bhima
• भीमः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• नाराचैः: with iron arrows (nārācas)
• नाराचैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाराच
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• मर्मभेदिभिः: piercing the vital spots
• मर्मभेदिभिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मर्मभेदिन्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhīma
• nārāca (arrows)
• marma (vital points)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the harsh reality of righteous warfare: strength alone does not exempt one from pain, and combat often turns on precise, ethically weighty acts—striking vital points—testing endurance and resolve within the kṣatriya code.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Bhīma, while fighting on the battlefield, is struck and pierced by nārāca arrows that penetrate vital spots, indicating an intense exchange where opponents attempt to disable even a formidable warrior through targeted wounds.