Shloka 39
Adhyāya 111 (Book 6): Daśama-dina-saṃgrāma—Bhīṣma’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira and the Śikhaṇḍin-Led Advance
न चैनं॑ वारयामासुर्व्यात्ताननममिवान्तकम्
sañjaya uvāca | na cainaṃ vārayāmāsur vyāttānanaṃ ivāntakam |
三阇耶说：他们无法遏止毗湿摩——如同张口噬人的死神。即便第十日已至，毗湿摩仍以锐箭之烈焰，将尸佉ṇḍī的战车军焚为灰烬，犹如林火吞没森林。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the unstoppable momentum of adharma-driven violence once war is fully engaged: even great warriors cannot easily ‘check’ a force like Bhīṣma when duty, wrath, and battlefield necessity converge. It invites reflection on dharma’s tragic dimension—right action in war may still entail devastating harm.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīṣma could not be restrained and appeared like Death with open jaws. As the tenth day dawns, Bhīṣma showers sharp arrows that burn through Śikhaṇḍī’s chariot-troops, likened to a forest-fire consuming a forest.