Shloka 23

अध्याय ८८ — घटोत्कच-दुर्योधनयुद्धवर्णनम्

Ghaṭotkaca–Duryodhana Engagement

Devanagari script

निकृत्तचाप: समरेडनपेक्ष: पराजित: शान्तनवेन चाजौ । विहाय बन्धूनथ सोदरांश्न क्व यास्यसे नानुरूपं तवेदम्‌

Transliteration

nikṛttacāpaḥ samare ’napekṣaḥ parājitaḥ śāntanavena cājau | vihāya bandhūn atha sodarāṁś ca kva yāsyase nānurūpaṁ tavedaṁ ||

Translation

三阇耶说道：“在战场上，善檀奴之子（毗湿摩）斩断了你的弓，并在交锋中击败了你；可你如今却装作对他漠然无动于衷。抛下亲族——甚至抛下同胞兄弟——你将往何处去？如此行径，实不相称于你。”

Word by Word

• {'nikṛtta-cāpaḥ': 'one whose bow has been cut off/broken', 'samare': 'in battle', 'anapekṣaḥ': 'indifferent, unconcerned

• acting without regard', 'parājitaḥ': 'defeated', 'śāntanavena': 'by the son/descendant of Śantanu (Bhīṣma)', 'ājau': 'in the fight, in combat', 'vihāya': 'having abandoned, leaving behind', 'bandhūn': 'kinsmen, relatives', 'atha': 'and then

• moreover', 'sodarān': 'uterine brothers, full brothers', 'ca': 'and', 'kva': 'where?', 'yāsyase': 'will you go?', 'na anurūpam': 'not suitable, not in keeping (with one’s station/nature)', 'tava': 'for you/your', 'idam': 'this (behavior/act)'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhīṣma
• Śantanu
• bow (cāpa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores kṣatriya-ethics: one should not abandon one’s kin and obligations out of fear or discouragement after defeat. Indifference or withdrawal in the face of a rightful opponent—especially after being overcome—appears as a lapse in honor and duty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a battlefield rebuke: after Bhīṣma (Śantanu’s son) cuts an opponent’s bow and defeats him, that person seems ready to disengage or turn away. Sañjaya questions where he can go after leaving his relatives and brothers, calling such behavior unfitting.