Shloka 27
न्यस्तशस्त्रे च भवति हतो भीष्म: पितामह: । शिखण्डिनं पुरस्कृत्य फाल्गुनेन महाहवे,“उन दिनों तुमने हथियार रख दिया था; इसलिये महासमरमें अर्जुनने शिखण्डीको आगे करके पितामह भीष्मको मार डाला था
nyastaśastre ca bhavati hato bhīṣmaḥ pitāmahaḥ | śikhaṇḍinaṃ puraskṛtya phālgunena mahāhave ||
Wika ni Sañjaya: “Nang ibinaba na niya ang kanyang mga sandata, ang pitāmaha na si Bhīṣma ay napabagsak sa dakilang labanan—si Arjuna (Phālguna) ay inilagay si Śikhaṇḍin sa unahan. Ipinapakita ng pangyayaring ito ang malungkot na pag-igting ng dharma sa digmaan: ang iginagalang na nakatatanda ay hindi lamang natatalo sa lakas, kundi sa isang ayos-taktika na hinubog ng mga panata, pagkakakilanlan, at mga hanggahan ng dharma sa larangan ng digmaan.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical complexity of dharma in war: even a righteous and revered elder like Bhīṣma can be brought down through a strategy that exploits his vows and moral constraints. It invites reflection on how duty, vows, and battlefield necessity can collide, producing outcomes that are tactically effective yet morally fraught.
Sañjaya recalls the moment Bhīṣma was felled: Arjuna advances with Śikhaṇḍin placed before him, and Bhīṣma—constrained by his stance toward Śikhaṇḍin and effectively disarmed/with weapons lowered—becomes vulnerable and is struck down in the great battle.