Shloka 17

Devanagari script

तेषामापततां शब्द: शुश्रुवे फाल्गुनं प्रति

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | teṣām āpatatāṃ śabdaḥ śuśruve phālgunaṃ prati, atāḍayan raṇe bhīṣmaṃ sahitāḥ sarvasṛñjayāḥ |

Translation

三阇耶说道：那些战士奔突而来的轰然之声，滚滚传向法尔古那（阿周那）。众斯林阇耶同心合力，在战场上从四面八方攻打毗湿摩。

Word by Word

• {'sañjaya uvāca': 'Sañjaya said', 'teṣām': 'of them', 'āpatatām': 'of those rushing/charging down', 'śabdaḥ': 'sound, roar, din', 'śuśruve': 'was heard', 'phālgunaṃ prati': 'toward Phālguna (Arjuna)', 'atāḍayan': 'they struck, smote, attacked', 'raṇe': 'in battle', 'bhīṣmam': 'Bhīṣma', 'sahitāḥ': 'together, united', 'sarva-sṛñjayāḥ': 'all the Sṛñjayas (Pāṇḍava-aligned warriors)'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Phālguna (Arjuna)
• Bhīṣma
• Sṛñjayas

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the battlefield tension between reverence and duty: Bhīṣma is an elder worthy of honor, yet once he stands as a commander in war, opposing warriors—acting under their own kṣatriya-dharma and allegiance—treat him as a legitimate target. It reflects how dharma in war can demand harsh action even against the venerable.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that the thunderous sound of charging warriors is heard moving toward Arjuna, while the Sṛñjaya forces, acting in concert, strike Bhīṣma in the thick of battle, pressing him from all sides with weapons.