Shloka 22

Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 107: Karṇa–Bhīma Saṃmarda

Arrow-storm Engagement

Devanagari script

सौमदत्ते: पुनर्यूपो यज्ञशीलस्थ धीमतः

Transliteration

saumadatteḥ punaryūpo yajñaśīlastha dhīmataḥ

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: „Wieder wird/erscheint der Opferpfahl (yūpa) des Saumadatti—des Weisen, der in der Opferzucht standhaft ist. Die Zeile beschwört vedische Frömmigkeit mitten im Krieg und erinnert daran, dass rituelle Tugend und ererbtes Dharma selbst im gewaltsamen Druck der Schlacht gegenwärtig bleiben.“

Word by Word

• सौमदत्तेः: of Saumadatta (Bhūriśravas)
• सौमदत्तेः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सौमदत्त
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• पुनः: again
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः

• यूपः: sacrificial post
• यूपः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: यूप
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यज्ञशीलस्थः: standing/placed at the sacrificial ground
• यज्ञशीलस्थः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यज्ञशीलस्थ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धीमतः: of the wise one
• धीमतः: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धीमत्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Saumadatti (Bhūriśravas / son of Somadatta)
• yūpa (sacrificial post)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in the midst of war, the Mahābhārata repeatedly recalls a warrior’s prior dharmic identity—here, devotion to yajña and disciplined conduct—suggesting that ethical reputation and inherited duty remain morally significant beyond the battlefield.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya continues his report of the battle events and, in doing so, refers again to Saumadatti and the image of a yūpa (sacrificial post), a marker of ritual life, to characterize him as a wise man grounded in sacrificial discipline.