Shloka 31
द्रोणस्य सुपर्णव्यूहः — युधिष्ठिरप्रत्यव्यूहः
Droṇa’s Suparṇa Formation and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Counter-array
चामरापीडकवचा: स्रस्तान्त्रनयनास्तथा । सारोहास्तुरगा: पेतु: पार्थबाणहता: क्षितौ
cāmarāpīḍakavacāḥ srastāntranayanās tathā | sārohās turagāḥ petuḥ pārthabāṇahatāḥ kṣitau ||
Sañjaya sprach: Die Krieger, in Rüstung gehüllt und mit Yakschwanzfächern geschmückt, mit erschlafften Augen und Gliedern im Zusammenbruch, stürzten zur Erde—zusammen mit ihren Pferden und Wagenlenkern—von den Pfeilen Pārthas (Arjunas) getroffen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the impermanence of worldly splendor and status in the face of death and duty-bound conflict: even richly adorned, well-armored fighters fall when confronted by superior martial discipline. It implicitly reflects the Mahābhārata’s ethical tension—glory and power are fragile, while actions (karma) in war bring immediate, irreversible consequences.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that many combatants—together with their horses and charioteers—are collapsing onto the ground, having been struck by Arjuna’s arrows. The imagery emphasizes the scale and effectiveness of Arjuna’s assault in the Drona Parva battle sequence.