Shloka 53

दृष्टवा विनिहतान्‌ भ्रातृन्‌ भीमसेनेन संयुगे

dṛṣṭvā vinihatān bhrātṝn bhīmasenena saṁyuge

Sañjaya said: Seeing his brothers slain by Bhīmasena in the thick of battle, the onlooker is confronted with the stark moral weight of fratricidal war—where loyalty to one’s side and the demands of kṣatriya duty collide with grief, rage, and the irreversible consequences of violence.

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen
दृष्ट्वा:
Karma
TypeVerb
Rootदृश्
Formक्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), परस्मैपद-भाव (active sense)
विनिहतान्slain, killed
विनिहतान्:
Karma
TypeAdjective
Rootविनिहत
FormMasculine, Accusative, Plural
भ्रातॄन्brothers
भ्रातॄन्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootभ्रातृ
FormMasculine, Accusative, Plural
भीमसेनेनby Bhimasena
भीमसेनेन:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootभीमसेन
FormMasculine, Instrumental, Singular
संयुगेin battle
संयुगे:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootसंयुग
FormMasculine, Locative, Singular

संजय उवाच

S
Sañjaya
B
Bhīmasena
B
brothers (bhrātṛ)

Educational Q&A

The verse foregrounds the ethical gravity of war: even when actions are framed as duty and strategy, the sight of slain kin exposes the human cost—grief and moral shock—reminding the listener that victory in dharma-yuddha still carries profound personal and societal consequences.

Sañjaya narrates that someone (contextually, a warrior or observer on the Kaurava side) sees his brothers lying dead, killed by Bhīmasena during the battle, setting up an emotional and retaliatory response within the ongoing combat of the Droṇa Parva.