Shloka 21
Bhīṣma’s Fall, the Arrow-bed (śara-talpa), and the Establishment of Guard
युधिष्ठटिरस्य च क्रोधो भीष्मश्वार्जुनसज्भतः । मम चास्त्रसमारम्भ: प्रजानामशिवं ध्रुवम्,'युधिष्ठिरका क्रोध करना, भीष्म और अर्जुनका संघर्ष होना और मेरा अपने विविध अस्त्रोंके प्रयोगके लिये उद्योग करना--ये तीनों बातें निश्चय ही प्रजाजनोंके अमंगलकी सूचना देनेवाली हैं
yudhiṣṭhirasya ca krodho bhīṣmaśvārjunasambhavaḥ | mama cāstrasamārambhaḥ prajānām aśivaṃ dhruvam ||
三阇耶说道：“由提湿陀罗的怒火、毗湿摩与阿周那的交锋，以及我自己准备发动诸般兵器——这三件事无疑都是凶兆，必将预示百姓的灾厄。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames anger and escalation in warfare as ethically dangerous: when even the dharma-minded Yudhiṣṭhira is driven to wrath, when revered elders and foremost heroes collide, and when weapons are actively set in motion, the likely outcome is widespread harm to ordinary people. It highlights the moral cost of war borne by the populace.
Sañjaya, observing the battlefield developments, interprets three signs—Yudhiṣṭhira’s anger, the confrontation between Bhīṣma and Arjuna, and his own initiation of weapon-use—as portents. He concludes these indicate impending calamity for the subjects caught in the conflict.