Shloka 34
अध्याय ५३ — रणमेघोपमा सेना-वर्णना तथा सुषेण-वधोत्तर प्रतिक्रिया
Battle-as-Storm Imagery and the Aftermath of Suṣeṇa’s Fall
कृतवर्मा तु समरे पार्षतेन दृढाहत: । पार्षतं॑ सरथं साशथ्वंं छादयामास सायकै:,धृष्टद्युम्मका गहरा आघात पाकर समरभूमिमें कृतवर्मने बाणोंकी वर्षा करके घोड़ों और रथसहित धृष्टद्युम्मको आच्छादित कर दिया
kṛtavarmā tu samare pārṣatena dṛḍhāhataḥ | pārṣataṃ sa-rathaṃ sāśvaṃ chādayāmāsa sāyakaiḥ ||
Sañjaya thưa: “Giữa trận mạc, Kṛtavarmā tuy bị con trai Pṛṣata (Dhṛṣṭadyumna) đánh trúng nặng nề, vẫn đáp trả bằng mưa tên, phủ kín Dhṛṣṭadyumna cùng cả chiến xa và ngựa.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates the kṣatriya ethos of steadfastness under attack and immediate counteraction; ethically, it also reflects how warfare tends to intensify through retaliation, testing restraint and discernment amid duty.
Dhṛṣṭadyumna strikes Kṛtavarmā powerfully in battle, and Kṛtavarmā responds by raining arrows so densely that Dhṛṣṭadyumna, along with his chariot and horses, is obscured/overwhelmed by the missile-shower.