Mahabharata 7.118.16 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 118, Shloka 16

भूरिश्रवसः गर्हा, प्रायोपवेशः, सात्यकिकृतशिरच्छेदः

Bhūriśravas’s Censure, Prāyopaveśa, and Sātyaki’s Beheading

Devanagari script

अथान्यद्‌ धनुरादाय हेमपृष्ठं दुरासदम्‌

Transliteration

athānyad dhanur ādāya hemapṛṣṭhaṃ durāsadam

Translation

قال سنجيا: ثم تناول قوسًا آخر—مُذهَّب الظهر، عسيرًا على غيره أن يثبت له—ليتابع القتال.

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• अन्यत्: another (one)
• अन्यत्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

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

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

• हेमपृष्ठम्: gold-backed
• हेमपृष्ठम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हेमपृष्ठ
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• दुरासदम्: hard to approach/assail
• दुरासदम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुरासद
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• bow (dhanuḥ)
• gold (hema)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how, in the momentum of war, power and superior arms can intensify violence; it invites reflection on restraint and responsibility (dharma) even when one possesses overwhelming capability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that a warrior takes up another formidable, gold-backed bow, signaling renewed or intensified combat action in the ongoing battle sequence of Droṇa Parva.