Shloka 12
Droṇanidhana-anantaraṃ sainya-viṣādaḥ and Karṇa-pravṛttiḥ
After Droṇa’s fall: army despondency and Karṇa’s advance
तं हतं यज्ञसेनस्य पुत्रेणेह शिखण्डिना । पाण्डवेयाभिगुप्तेन श्र॒ुत्वा मे व्यथितं मन:,जो तेजस्वी भीष्म साक्षात् वसुके अवतार थे और युद्धमें प्रतिदिन दस हजार कवचधारी रथियोंका संहार करते थे। उन्हींको यहाँ पाण्डुपुत्र अर्जुनसे सुरक्षित ट्रपदकुमार शिखण्डीने मार डाला है, यह सुनकर मेरे मनमें बड़ी व्यथा हो रही है
taṁ hataṁ yajñasenasya putreṇeha śikhaṇḍinā | pāṇḍaveyābhiguptena śrutvā me vyathitaṁ manaḥ ||
ธฤตราษฏระตรัสว่า “เมื่อได้ยินว่า ภีษมะถูกสังหาร ณ ที่นี้โดยศิขัณฑี โอรสของยัชญเสนะ โดยมีปาณฑวะคุ้มกันอยู่ ใจของเราก็เจ็บร้าวยิ่งนัก”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how even the mightiest fall when circumstances, vows, and ethical complexities converge; it also shows the inner cost of adharma-aligned attachment—Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s grief arises not only from loss but from the dawning recognition that the war’s moral and strategic foundations are collapsing.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra reacts to the report that Bhīṣma has been brought down in battle by Śikhaṇḍin, who is effectively enabled by the Pāṇḍava side (with Arjuna’s protection). The king’s lament frames Bhīṣma’s fall as a decisive turning point in the Kurukṣetra war.