Shloka 16
भीमसेनस्य वेगाभिपातः—विशोकसारथिसंवादश्च
Bhīma’s surge and dialogue with charioteer Viśoka
श्रुतकीर्ति च नवभि: सुतसोमं च पठ्चभि: । अष्टशभि: श्रुतकर्माणं प्रतिविन्ध्यं त्रिभि: शरै:
śrutakīrtiṃ ca navabhiḥ sutasomaṃ ca pañcabhiḥ | aṣṭabhiḥ śrutakarmāṇaṃ prativindhyaṃ tribhiḥ śaraiḥ | śrutakīrtes tathā cāpaṃ ciccheda niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||
三阇耶说：他以九箭射中室鲁塔吉尔提，以五箭射中苏塔索摩，以八箭射中室鲁塔羯摩，又以三箭射中普拉提温陀耶。继而以锋利如剃刀的箭矢，竟又斩断了室鲁塔吉尔提的弓。此景凸显战场技艺那阴冷而严密的精准——勇武以克制与命中来衡量；然而弑亲之业的道德重负与无休止的升级，仍在不断遮蔽这场战争的达摩天际。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the disciplined precision of a warrior in battle—counted arrows, targeted strikes, and disabling an opponent’s weapon—while implicitly reminding the listener that technical prowess in war does not erase the accumulating moral burden of violence within a fratricidal conflict.
Sañjaya reports that a combatant shoots specific warriors—Śrutakīrti, Sutasoma, Śrutakarmā, and Prativindhya—with a set number of arrows, and then severs Śrutakīrti’s bow with sharp arrows, a tactical move to neutralize him.