Shloka 12
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Anxiety and Bhīṣma’s Theological Explanation of Pāṇḍava Invincibility
Book 6, Chapter 61
रथी रथिनमासाद्य शरै: कनकभूषणै: । पातयामास समरे तस्मिन्नति भयड्करे,वह संग्राम अत्यन्त भयानक हो रहा था। उसमें रथी रथियोंके सामने जाकर उन्हें स्वर्णभूषित बाणोंसे मार गिराते थे
rathī rathinam āsādya śaraiḥ kanakabhūṣaṇaiḥ | pātayāmāsa samare tasminn ati bhayaṅkare ||
Sañjaya thưa: “Trận chiến ấy thật vô cùng kinh khiếp. Trong đó, các dũng sĩ chiến xa áp sát chiến xa đối phương và dùng những mũi tên trang sức vàng mà bắn hạ.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim reality of war: even the foremost warriors confront and destroy their peers. It implicitly points to the ethical gravity of kṣatriya warfare—valor and skill operate within a terrifying arena where life is taken, reminding the listener that martial glory is inseparable from suffering and moral burden.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield as extremely dreadful. Chariot-warriors advance directly against other chariot-warriors and bring them down using gold-adorned arrows, emphasizing close engagement among elite fighters and the intense, fearsome nature of the combat.