Shloka 34

Devanagari script

ततो घटोत्कचो राजन्नलम्बुषवधेप्सया

Transliteration

tato ghaṭotkaco rājann alambuṣa-vadhepsayā

Translation

Sañjaya said: Then, O King, Ghaṭotkaca advanced, intent on slaying Alambuṣa—driven by the resolve to remove a dangerous foe amid the turmoil of battle.

Word by Word

• ततः: then; thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद्
• Form: Avyaya (ablatival adverb: 'from that/then')

• घटोत्कचः: Ghaṭotkaca
• घटोत्कचः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: घटोत्कच
• Form: Masculine, nominative, singular

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, vocative, singular

• अलम्बुष-वधेप्सया: with the desire to kill Alambuṣa
• अलम्बुष-वधेप्सया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अलम्बुषवधेप्सा
• Form: Feminine, instrumental, singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Ghaṭotkaca
• Alambuṣa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights purposeful action in war: a warrior identifies a specific threat and moves decisively to neutralize it. Ethically, it points to the tension between personal resolve (even vengeance) and the broader duty to protect one’s side by removing a dangerous adversary.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Ghaṭotkaca, focusing his intent on Alambuṣa’s death, moves forward to engage him—setting up a direct confrontation between the two rākṣasa fighters.