Shloka 57

Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ

King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt

Devanagari script

अभ्यद्रवच्च तं सद्यो दृष्टवैवामिषशड्कया । तुण्डयुद्धमथाकाशे तावुभौ सम्प्रचक्रतु:,उस बाजको देखते ही उसके पास मांस होनेकी आशंकासे दूसरा बाज तत्काल उसपर टूट पड़ा। फिर वे दोनों पक्षी आकाशमें एक-दूसरेको चोंचोंसे मारते हुए युद्ध करने लगे

Transliteration

abhyadravac ca taṃ sadyo dṛṣṭvaivāmiṣaśaṅkayā | tuṇḍayuddham athākāśe tāv ubhau sampracakratuḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: Als er ihn sah und vermutete, er trage Fleisch, stieß der andere Habicht sofort auf ihn herab. Dann begannen die beiden Vögel im offenen Himmel einen Schnabelkampf, einander schlagend, während sie rangen.

Word by Word

अभ्यद्रवत्ran towards / rushed at

चand

तम्him/that one

सद्यःimmediately

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

एवindeed/just

आमिषशङ्कयाdue to suspicion of meat

तुण्डयुद्धम्beak-fight

अथthen

आकाशेin the sky

तौthose two

उभौboth

सम्प्रचक्रतुःthey engaged/began (to fight)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

two hawks (śyena/birds of prey)

flesh/meat (āmiṣa)

sky (ākāśa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how suspicion and craving for gain (here, meat as prey) can immediately trigger aggression and conflict. It sets a moral backdrop often used in the Mahābhārata to contrast instinct-driven violence with dharma-guided restraint.

What is happening in the narrative?

One hawk, suspecting the other has flesh, instantly attacks. The two then engage in an aerial fight, striking each other with their beaks.