Shloka 21

Devanagari script

पाण्डुसेनां हतां दृष्टवा तव पुत्रेण भारत

Transliteration

pāṇḍusenāṁ hatāṁ dṛṣṭvā tava putreṇa bhārata

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: „O Bhārata (Dhṛtarāṣṭra), als er sah, wie das Heer der Pāṇḍavas von deinem Sohn niedergemacht wurde, …“

Word by Word

• पाण्डुसेनाम्: the Pandava army
• पाण्डुसेनाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डुसेना
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• हताम्: slain
• हताम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हन्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular, Past passive participle (क्त)

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वा)

• तव: of you/your
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: —, Genitive, Singular

• पुत्रेण: by (your) son
• पुत्रेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• भारत: O Bharata
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारत
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (Bhārata)
• the Pāṇḍavas (Pāṇḍu’s line)
• your son (Duryodhana, contextually)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line underscores the moral weight of victory achieved through slaughter: even when one’s side appears to prevail, the ethical burden and the chain of consequences fall back upon the responsible agents—especially the king who enabled the conflict and the son who prosecuted it.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya continues reporting to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. He describes a moment where the Pāṇḍava forces are seen as devastated by Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son, setting up the ensuing reaction and developments in the battle narrative.