Shloka 243
द्रोणवध-प्रश्नः
Droṇa’s Fall: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Inquiry
शूरं शिखण्डिन: पुत्रम॒क्षदेवमुदावहन् । शिखण्डीके शूरवीर पुत्र ऋक्षदेवको पद्मकेः समान वर्ण और निर्मल नेत्रवाले बाह्विकः देशके सजे-सजाये घोड़ोंने रणभूमिमें पहुँचाया
sañjaya uvāca | śūraṃ śikhaṇḍinaḥ putram akṣadevam udāvahan |
Sañjaya sprach: Die Krieger führten Akṣadeva, den tapferen Sohn Śikhaṇḍins, herbei und brachten ihn ins Schlachtfeld. In der moralischen Atmosphäre des Krieges hebt der Vers hervor, wie Abstammung, persönlicher Mut und die geordnete Unterstützung der eigenen Seite (Wagen und Pferde) zu Werkzeugen werden, durch die ein Kämpfer in die Arena gestellt wird, wo Pflicht und Vernichtung ineinander greifen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the epic’s recurrent ethic that in wartime a warrior’s role is shaped by dharma as understood through lineage and martial obligation, while also showing how individual valor depends on collective support and orderly deployment.
Sanjaya reports that Akṣadeva, the brave son of Śikhaṇḍin, is brought forward and conveyed into the battle—an announcement of a combatant’s arrival and readiness within the unfolding formations of the Drona Parva conflict.