Shloka 17
Somadatta’s Kṣātra-Dharma Accusation; Night Combat, Māyā, and the Fall of Ghaṭotkaca
Droṇa-parva, Adhyāya 131
समरे सर्वयोधानां ध्नूंष्यभ्यपतन् क्षितौ | शस्त्राणि न्यपतन् दोर्भ्य: केषांचिच्चासवो<5द्रवन्,उस समरांगणमें प्राय: सम्पूर्ण योद्धाओंके धनुष तथा अन्य अस्त्र-शस्त्र हाथोंसे छूटकर पृथ्वीपर गिर पड़े। कितनोंके तो प्राण ही निकल गये
samare sarvayodhānāṁ dhanūṁṣy abhyapatan kṣitau | śastrāṇi nyapatan dorbhyaḥ keṣāṁcic cāsavo 'dravan ||
Sañjaya said: In that battle, the bows of nearly all the warriors fell down upon the earth; weapons slipped from their arms, and from some, life itself fled away.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the fragility of human power in war: even the strongest warriors lose control of their weapons, and life can depart in an instant. It implicitly warns that violence rapidly overwhelms skill and pride, confronting all with impermanence and the heavy moral cost of battle.
Sañjaya describes a moment of intense fighting where bows and weapons slip from warriors’ arms and fall to the ground; some combatants die on the spot. The battlefield is portrayed as chaotic and devastating, with widespread collapse of fighting capacity and sudden deaths.