Shloka 41
युयुधानस्य राजेन्द्र मनसैतदचिन्तयत् । राजेन्द्र! तदनन्तर रणक्षेत्रमें सात्यकिके उस अमानुषिक पराक्रमको देखकर द्रोणाचार्यने मन-ही-मन इस प्रकार विचार किया || ४० ई ।। एतदस्त्रबलं रामे कार्तवीर्ये धनंजये,सात्वतकुलके श्रेष्ठ वीर सात्यकिमें जो यह अस्त्रबल दिखायी देता है, ऐसा तो केवल परशुराममें, कार्तवीर्य अर्जुनमें, धनंजयमें तथा पुरुषसिंह भीष्ममें ही देखा-सुना गया है। ट्रोणाचार्यने मन-ही-मन उनके पराक्रमकी बड़ी प्रशंसा की
sañjaya uvāca | yuyudhānasya rājendra manasaitad acintayat | rājendra tad-anantaraṁ raṇakṣetre sātyakīke amānuṣika-parākramaṁ dṛṣṭvā droṇācāryo manasāivaivaṁ vicintayām āsa || etad astrabalaṁ rāme kārtavīrye dhanañjaye bhīṣme ca puruṣarṣabhe | sātvata-kula-śreṣṭhe vīre sātyakau yad idaṁ dṛśyate, tādṛśaṁ kevalaṁ eteṣv eva dṛṣṭa-śrutaṁ mayā ||
Sañjaya said: “O king, Drona reflected in his mind about Yuyudhāna. Then, O king, after witnessing Sātyaki’s superhuman prowess on the battlefield, Drona pondered inwardly: ‘This force of weapon-skill that is seen in the heroic Sātyaki, the best of the Sātvata line—such power has been seen or heard of only in Paraśurāma, in Kārtavīrya Arjuna, in Dhanañjaya (Arjuna), and in Bhīṣma, the bull among men.’ Thus Drona, even amid war, acknowledged excellence where it appeared, measuring valor by remembered exemplars rather than by partisan hatred.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in the heat of war, true discernment recognizes excellence without distortion. Drona’s inward praise models an ethic of fairness: judging skill by objective standards and venerable exemplars rather than by factional bias.
After seeing Sātyaki’s extraordinary feats on the battlefield, Drona mentally compares his weapon-mastery to legendary and peerless warriors—Paraśurāma, Kārtavīrya Arjuna, Arjuna (Dhanañjaya), and Bhīṣma—thereby acknowledging Sātyaki’s exceptional stature.