Shloka 28
Droṇa’s sweeping assault and the Abhimanyu–Jayadratha close-quarters episode (द्रोणस्य भीषणव्यचरितम् / सौभद्र-जयद्रथ-संनिपातः)
मोहयित्वा ततः सैन्यं भारद्वाज: प्रतापवान् | धृष्टद्युम्नबलं तूर्ण व्यधमन्निशितै: शरै:,इस प्रकार प्रतापी द्रोणाचार्यने पाण्डव-सेनाको मोहित करके पैने बाणोंद्वारा तुरंत ही धृष्टद्युम्नकी सेनाका संहार आरम्भ कर दिया
mohayitvā tataḥ sainyaṃ bhāradvājaḥ pratāpavān | dhṛṣṭadyumnabalaṃ tūrṇaṃ vyadhamann iśitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Having then thrown the army into confusion, the mighty Bhāradvāja (Droṇa) swiftly began to cut down the forces of Dhṛṣṭadyumna with his sharp arrows.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how psychological disruption (mohana—confusion of ranks and resolve) can decide outcomes in war, while also intensifying the dharmic dilemma: even when performed as a warrior’s duty, victory achieved through overwhelming force entails grave human cost.
Sañjaya reports that Droṇa, after confounding the opposing host, rapidly begins slaughtering Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s contingent with volleys of sharp arrows, marking a surge in Droṇa’s offensive against the Pāṇḍava side.