Mahabharata 7.196.8 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 196, Shloka 8
रामस्य तु सम: शस्त्रे पुरंदरसमो युधि । कार्तवीर्यसमो वीर्ये बृहस्पतिसमो मतौ
rāmasya tu samaḥ śastre purandarasamo yudhi | kārtavīryasamo vīrye bṛhaspatisamo matau ||
قال دِهْرِتَرَاشْتْرَا: «إنَّ أَشْوَتْثَامَا يُضاهِي رَامَا (بَرَشُورَامَا) في إتقان السلاح، ويُضاهِي بُورَنْدَرَا (إِنْدْرَا) في ساحة القتال، ويُضاهِي كَارْتَفِيرْيَا في القوّة والبأس، ويُضاهِي بْرِهَسْبَتِي في الرأي والمشورة. وبهذه المقارنات يُبرز الملك تفوّق ابن دْرُونَا المهيب—تفوقًا، في المناخ الأخلاقي للحرب، يزيد رهبة العنف ويُعظّم في الوقت نفسه المسؤولية الملازمة للقوّة.»
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that extraordinary skill and strength are morally weighty: when a warrior’s power approaches the archetypal standards of gods and legendary heroes, the consequences of how that power is used become correspondingly grave—especially in a dharma-fractured war.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra is hearing about the battlefield situation and describes Aśvatthāmā’s formidable qualities through a chain of exalted comparisons (Paraśurāma, Indra, Kārtavīrya, Bṛhaspati), emphasizing why he is a decisive and fearsome figure in the Drona Parva conflict.
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