Shloka 45

Devanagari script

विमुक्तौ च महात्मानौ दृष्टवा द्रौणि: सुदु:खित: । मुहूर्त चिन्तयामास किं त्वेतदिति मारिष,माननीय नरेश! महात्मा श्रीकृष्ण और अर्जुनको आग्नेयास्त्रसे मुक्त देख अश्वत्थामाको बड़ा दुःख हुआ। वह दो घड़ीतक इसी चिन्तामें डूबा रहा कि “यह क्या हो गया?”

Transliteration

vimuktau ca mahātmānau dṛṣṭvā drauṇiḥ suduḥkhitaḥ | muhūrtaṁ cintayāmāsa kiṁ tv etad iti māriṣa ||

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: Als Droṇas Sohn Aśvatthāmā sah, dass die beiden großherzigen Helden—Kṛṣṇa und Arjuna—vom Feuerwaffen-Geschoss (Agneyāstra) befreit waren, wurde er von tiefstem Kummer überwältigt. Ehrwürdiger König, eine Weile blieb er in Gedanken versunken: „Wie konnte das geschehen?“

Word by Word

विमुक्तौreleased, freed

चand

महात्मानौthe two great-souled ones

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

द्रौणिःDrauni (Aśvatthāman)

सुदुःखितःdeeply distressed

मुहूर्तम्for a moment (a while)

चिन्तयामासhe pondered, he thought

किम्what?

तुbut, indeed

एतत्this

इतिthus (quotative)

मारिषO sir! (term of address)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Drauṇi (Aśvatthāmā)

Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Arjuna

Āgneyāstra (Fire-weapon)

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 the limits of mere force and weaponry in a dharmic war: even formidable astras can be neutralized, and the aggressor’s mind is shaken when righteous or divinely protected opponents remain unharmed. It also shows how attachment to victory and reliance on power lead to inner turmoil when outcomes defy expectation.

What is happening in the narrative?

After deploying the Fire-weapon (Āgneyāstra), Aśvatthāmā sees Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna freed from its effect. Struck by sorrow and frustration, he pauses and broods for a time, trying to understand how his attack failed.