Shloka 47

Devanagari script

एतस्मिन्नेव काले तु द्रोण: शस्त्रभृतां वर: । द्रुपदं त्रिभिरासाद्य शरैरविव्याध दारुणै:

Transliteration

etasminneva kāle tu droṇaḥ śastrabhṛtāṃ varaḥ | drupadaṃ tribhir āsādya śarair avivyādha dāruṇaiḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: At that very moment, Droṇa—foremost among weapon-bearers—closed in upon Drupada and pierced him with three fierce arrows.

Word by Word

एतस्मिन्in this

एवindeed/just

कालेtime

तुbut/and

द्रोणःDrona

शस्त्रभृताम्of weapon-bearers/warriors

वरःthe best

द्रुपदम्Drupada

त्रिभिःwith three

आसाद्यhaving approached/coming up to

शरैःwith arrows

अविव्याधpierced/wounded

दारुणैःterrible/fierce

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇa

Drupada

arrows (śara)

weapons (śastra)

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 how warfare amplifies personal animosities and tests adherence to kṣatriya-dharma: skill and resolve are exercised in battle, yet the ethical tension remains—martial duty can become a vehicle for settling old enmities.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Droṇa swiftly approaches Drupada and wounds him with three fierce arrows, marking an intense moment of direct engagement between two long-standing rivals on the battlefield.