Shloka 40
Gāndhārī’s Battlefield Survey: The Fallen and the Onset of Funeral Rites (शल्य-भगीरथ-भीष्म-द्रोणादि-दर्शनम्)
शरैश्न विविधैरन्यैर्थक्ष्यते भूरितेजसम् । इति द्रोणं समाधाय शंसन्ति च रुदन्ति च
śaraiś ca vividhair anyair takṣyate bhūritejasam | iti droṇaṃ samādhāya śaṃsanti ca rudanti ca
Vaiśampāyana sprach: „Auch mit vielen anderen Arten von Pfeilen wird der Mächtige von großem Glanz niedergehauen.“ So sprechend legten sie Droṇa (für die letzten Riten) nieder, redeten von ihm und klagten, lobten seine Größe und weinten zugleich.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the most radiant and powerful can be brought down by the machinery of war; the verse juxtaposes praise with tears to underline the ethical cost of violence and the fragility of worldly greatness.
The speakers describe how the great warrior Drona has been cut down amid the battle’s weapons; they then arrange his body and, while recounting his virtues, mourn him—showing collective grief in the aftermath of slaughter.