Mahabharata 9.17.76 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 17, Shloka 76

Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)

Devanagari script

तदादाय धनु: श्रेष्ठ वरिष्ठ: सर्वधन्विनाम्‌

Transliteration

tadādāya dhanuḥ śreṣṭhaṃ variṣṭhaḥ sarva-dhanvinām

Translation

三阇耶说道：他执起那张最上之弓——诸弓手兵器之冠——这位弓术第一者遂整备而动，昭示战事阴沉之法（dharma）所要求的决断与武人之责。

Word by Word

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• आदाय: having taken
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + दा
• Form: ल्यप् (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage)

• धनुः: bow
• धनुः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: धनुस्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• श्रेष्ठम्: best, excellent
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्रेष्ठ
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• वरिष्ठः: the most excellent (one)
• वरिष्ठः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वरिष्ठ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वधन्विनाम्: of all archers
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वधन्विन्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• bow (dhanuḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line highlights the ethic of decisive responsibility in a righteous battle: the foremost warrior takes up the finest weapon, embodying readiness to fulfill kṣatriya-duty with resolve rather than hesitation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that the pre-eminent archer (implied from the surrounding context) takes up an excellent bow, marking a moment of preparation and escalation within the battlefield action.