Shloka 43

Devanagari script

शिखण्डी तु महाराज भरतानां पितामहम्‌

Transliteration

śikhaṇḍī tu mahārāja bharatānāṁ pitāmaham

Translation

三阇耶说道：“然而，尸建陀，伟大的王啊，挺身上前，直面婆罗多族的祖父——毗湿摩。”

Word by Word

• शिखण्डी: Shikhandi
• शिखण्डी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिखण्डिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• भरतानाम्: of the Bharatas
• भरतानाम्: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: भरत
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• पितामहम्: the grandsire (Bhishma)
• पितामहम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितामह
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śikhaṇḍī
• Bhīṣma (pitāmaha)
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (mahārāja, implied addressee)
• Bharatas / Kurus

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how dharma in war is not merely about strength but about adherence to vows and ethical constraints. Bhīṣma’s identity as ‘pitāmaha’ embodies duty and restraint, while Śikhaṇḍī’s presence foregrounds the moral complexity of using a particular opponent to neutralize a mighty warrior within the accepted (or contested) norms of battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Śikhaṇḍī is confronting Bhīṣma, the grandsire of the Kuru/Bharata line. This sets up the well-known battlefield situation in which Bhīṣma will not engage Śikhaṇḍī as a full opponent, enabling the Pāṇḍava side to press their attack against him.