Mahabharata 7.115.296 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 115, Shloka 296

धृतराष्ट्र-संजय-संवादः — सात्यकि-अलम्बुसयोर्युद्धवर्णनम्

Dhṛtarāṣṭra–Saṃjaya Dialogue; Account of Sātyaki vs Alambusa

Devanagari script

आच्छादयदसम्भ्रान्तस्ततो द्रोण उवाच ह । इसी प्रकार सात्यकिने भी बिना किसी घबराहटके बहुत-से शीघ्रगामी बाणोंकी वर्षा करके द्रोणाचार्यको ढक दिया। तब द्रोणाचार्य बोले--

Transliteration

ācchādayad asambhrāntas tato droṇa uvāca ha | (iti prakāraḥ sātyakine'pi vinā ghābarāhaṭena bahu-śīghragāmī-bāṇa-varṣāṃ kṛtvā droṇācāryaṃ ācchādayām āsa | tataḥ droṇācārya uvāca—)

Translation

قال سَنجايا: ثابتَ الجَنان غيرَ مضطرب، غطّى درونا بوابلٍ كثيف من السهام السريعة. وعلى المنوال نفسه، فإن ساتيَكي—من غير أدنى فزع—أمطر دروناآچاريا بسهامٍ كثيرة خاطفة حتى أحاط به. عندئذٍ تكلّم درونا—

Word by Word

• आच्छादयत्: covered, concealed
• आच्छादयत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-छद्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• असम्भ्रान्तः: unagitated, unconfused
• असम्भ्रान्तः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ-सम्भ्रान्त
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• द्रोणः: Droṇa
• द्रोणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रोण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said, spoke
• उवाच: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• ह: indeed (emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Droṇa (Droṇācārya)
• Sātyaki (Yuyudhāna)
• arrows (bāṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds steadiness under pressure: fearlessness and lack of agitation (asambhrānta) are presented as a disciplined mental state. Ethically, it shows how inner control—often praised as a virtue—can be directed toward destructive ends in war, underscoring the Mahābhārata’s complex portrayal of dharma in conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Sātyaki, remaining calm, overwhelms Droṇa with a rapid shower of arrows, effectively ‘covering’ him. The line then serves as a transition: after being thus assailed, Droṇa begins to speak, setting up his response in the following verses.