Shloka 9
Duryodhana’s Anxiety, Bhīṣma’s Reassurance, and Renewed Mobilization (दुर्योधनचिन्ता–भीष्मप्रत्याश्वासन–सेनानिर्गमनम्)
जीवितान्तकरान् घोरान् समादत्त शिलीमुखान् | तैस्तूर्ण समरे<विध्यद् द्रौणिं बलवतां वर:
sañjaya uvāca | jīvitāntakarān ghorān samādatta śilīmukhān | tais tūrṇaṃ samare ’vidhyad drauṇiṃ balavatāṃ varaḥ |
三阇耶说：阿周那——诸强者中最卓越者——执起可断人命的可怖“尸利目迦”箭，迅疾在战场上射伤了德罗那之子阿湿婆他摩。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the severe moral pressure of battlefield duty: when confronted by a dangerous foe, a warrior may be compelled to use deadly means, yet the action is framed as swift, purposeful execution of kṣatriya responsibility rather than cruelty for its own sake.
Sañjaya narrates that Arjuna, choosing fearsome, lethal arrows, quickly wounds Droṇa’s son Aśvatthāmā in the midst of battle.