Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 14

रणभूमिवर्णनम् — Devāsuropama-yuddha and the ‘River’ Metaphor of the Battlefield

Devanagari script

कथं रणे हत: शल्यो धर्मराजेन संजय

Transliteration

kathaṁ raṇe hataḥ śalyo dharmarājena sañjaya

Translation

Sañjaya said: “How was Śalya slain in battle by Dharmarāja? Tell me, O Sañjaya.”

Word by Word

• कथम्: how?
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम्

• रणे: in battle
• रणे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रण
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• हतः: slain
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हन् (हत-)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• शल्यः: Shalya
• शल्यः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शल्य
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धर्मराजेन: by Dharmaraja (Yudhishthira)
• धर्मराजेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मराज
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• संजय: O Sanjaya
• Type: Noun
• Root: संजय
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śalya
• Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• battlefield (raṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames a dharmic inquiry into violence and responsibility: even a ruler famed for righteousness (Dharmarāja) must sometimes act decisively in war. It invites reflection on how dharma operates under the harsh constraints of battle and duty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya introduces a question about the circumstances of Śalya’s death on the battlefield—specifically, how Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) managed to slay him—setting up the ensuing account of the combat and its outcome.