सो ऽतिविद्धो बलवता शत्रुणा शत्रुतापनः ॥
धनुर् अन्यत् समादाय सात्वतं प्रत्यविध्यत ॥
स विद्ध्वा सात्वतं बाणैस् त्रिभिर् एव विशां पते ॥
धनुश् चिच्छेद भल्लेन सुतीक्ष्णेन हसन्न् इव ॥
छिन्नधन्वा महाराज सात्यकिः क्रोधमूर्छितः ॥
प्रजहार महावेगां शक्तिं तस्य महोरसि ॥
स तु शक्त्या विभिन्नाङ्गो निपपात रथोत्तमात् ॥
लोहिताङ्ग इवाकाशाद् दीप्तरश्मिर् यदृच्छया ॥
so 'tividdho balavatā śatruṇā śatrutāpanaḥ ||
dhanur anyat samādāya sātvataṃ pratyavidhyata ||
sa viddhvā sātvataṃ bāṇais tribhir eva viśāṃ pate ||
dhanuś ciccheda bhallena sutīkṣṇena hasann iva ||
chinnadhanvā mahārāja sātyakiḥ krodhamūrchitaḥ ||
prajahāra mahāvegāṃ śaktiṃ tasya mahorasi ||
sa tu śaktyā vibhinnāṅgo nipapāta rathottamāt ||
lohitāṅga ivākāśād dīptaraśmir yadṛcchayā ||
He [Bhūri], grievously pierced by the mighty enemy — himself a scorcher of foes — took up another bow and pierced the Sātvata in return. Having pierced the Sātvata with just three arrows, O lord of peoples, he severed his bow with a most keen broad-headed arrow, as though laughing. With his bow cut, O great king, Sātyaki, maddened by wrath, hurled a swift javelin into his broad chest. He, his body cut by the javelin, collapsed from his splendid chariot, like the Red orb [Mars], radiant, unexpectedly falling from the sky.
4ec983b35f0c · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:49:34 PM UTC
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Bhūri falls "like the Red orb from the sky": the death of the warrior is clothed in the image of a falling planet — the heavens come down to earth. It is telling that even the triumphant Sātyaki strikes "maddened by wrath": victory is won not by cold skill but by fury. The verse teaches that the greatness of a warrior does not cancel his mortality — one who shines like a star still falls into the dust; and the one who struck him down is moved not by valor but by blind passion, so that his triumph is no brighter than his enemy's ruin.