Shloka 26
Aśvatthāmā’s Lamentation, Vow of Retaliation, and the Manifestation of the Nārāyaṇāstra (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय १६६)
पाण्डवीयेषु सैन्येषु न तं पश्याम कठ्चन । यो योधयेद् रणे द्रोणं धृष्टद्युम्नादृते नृप:,“हम पाण्डवोंकी सेनाओंमें धृष्टद्युम्मके सिवा ऐसे किसी वीर नरेशको नहीं देखते, जो रणक्षेत्रमें द्रोणाचार्यके साथ युद्ध कर सके
pāṇḍavīyeṣu sainyeṣu na taṃ paśyāma kaścana | yo yodhayet raṇe droṇaṃ dhṛṣṭadyumnād ṛte nṛpa ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, among the armies of the Pāṇḍavas we do not see anyone at all—except Dhṛṣṭadyumna—who could engage Droṇa in battle.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and strategic weight of exceptional power in war: when a single warrior’s mastery dominates the field, responsibility shifts to the one capable counterforce. It also underscores the ethical tension of dharma-yuddha—victory may depend not on numbers but on the right agent confronting the right opponent.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that within the Pāṇḍava forces, only Dhṛṣṭadyumna appears capable of meeting Droṇa in direct combat. The statement frames Droṇa as nearly unassailable and foreshadows the tactical focus on Dhṛṣṭadyumna as Droṇa’s principal challenger.