Shloka 25
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
स राजतो महास्कन्धस्तालो हेमविभूषित: । सौभद्रविशिखैश्छिन्न: पपात भुवि भारत
sa rājato mahāskandhas tālo hemavibhūṣitaḥ | saubhadra-viśikhaiś chinnaḥ papāta bhuvi bhārata bharatanandana ||
三阇耶说道：那高耸的军旗——巨杆如银辉闪耀，以黄金装饰，旗上绘有棕榈树之徽——被苏跋陀罗之子（苏婆陀罗之子）之箭斩断，坠落于地，哦婆罗多啊，婆罗多族之欢欣。于战争的道义氛围中，毗湿摩旗幡的倒下，是命运与意志转折的可见征兆：武勇并非徒然的暴烈，而是以纪律约束的技艺，指向战场上决定性的目标。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in a dharma-framed war narrative, outward symbols of power (a commander’s banner) can fall through focused skill and courage. It underscores impermanence of martial glory and the ethical weight of disciplined action aimed at a clear battlefield purpose rather than mere destruction.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a tall, silver-like, gold-adorned standard bearing a palm-tree emblem is cut by Saubhadra’s (Abhimanyu’s) arrows and falls to the ground—an emphatic battlefield moment indicating a setback to the side associated with that banner.