Shloka 156

Devanagari script

शुश्रुवे तुमुल: शब्द: क्रोशतामितरेतरम्‌ । प्रजानाथ! द्रोणाचार्यकी मार खाकर परस्पर चीखते-चिल्लाते हुए पांचालोंका घोर आर्तनाद सुनायी देने लगा

Transliteration

śuśruve tumulaḥ śabdaḥ krośatām itaretaram | prajānātha! droṇācāryakī māra khākar paraspara cīkhate-cillāte hue pāñcālāṃkā ghora ārtanāda sunāyī dene lagā

Translation

Sañjaya said: A tumultuous roar was heard as men cried out against one another. O lord of the people, after being struck down by Droṇācārya, the Pāñcālas’ dreadful wailing—shouting and screaming in mutual panic—began to resound.

Word by Word

• शुश्रुवे: was heard
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद/आत्मनेपद: आत्मनेपद), perfect (past), 3, singular

• तुमुलः: tumultuous, loud
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तुमुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• शब्दः: sound, noise
• शब्दः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शब्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• क्रोशताम्: of (those) shouting/crying
• Type: Verb
• Root: क्रुश् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ (present active participle), masculine/neuter (contextual), genitive, plural

• इतरेतरम्: mutually, at one another
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इतरेतर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: adverb

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (addressed as Prajānātha)
• Droṇācārya (Droṇa)
• Pāñcālas (Pañcāla warriors/people)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the immediate human consequence of warfare: victory manifests as the defeated side’s terror and lamentation. It implicitly invites ethical reflection on how martial duty (kṣatriya-dharma) coexists with the suffering it produces.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, after Droṇa’s assault, a thunderous uproar arises—fighters crying at one another—and the Pāñcālas’ dreadful cries of distress spread through the battlefield.