Shloka 116

Devanagari script

यथा व: संयुगे सर्वान्‌ न हन्याद्‌ रुक्मवाहन: । “जब ये संग्राममें हथियार डाल देंगे, तभी मनुष्योंद्वारा मारे जा सकते हैं। अतः पाण्डवो! “गुरुका वध करना उचित नहीं है” इस धर्मभावनाको छोड़कर उनपर विजय पानेके लिये कोई यत्न करो; जिससे सुवर्णमय रथवाले द्रोणाचार्य तुम सब लोगोंका वध न कर डालें

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | yathā vaḥ saṃyuge sarvān na hanyād rukmavāhanaḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya said: “Act in such a way in this battle that the golden-charioted one (Droṇa) does not slay all of you. Do not cling to the scruple, ‘It is not right to kill the guru’; rather, make some effort to overcome him, so that Droṇācārya, mounted on his splendid chariot, does not destroy you all.”

Word by Word

यथाso that / in such a way that

वःof you / your

संयुगेin battle

सर्वान्all

नnot

हन्यात्might/should kill

रुक्मवाहनःthe one whose vehicle/chariot is golden (Drona)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇa (Droṇācārya)

Pāṇḍavas

guru (teacher, as a role/ethical category)

rukmavāhana (golden chariot)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

In a life-and-death dharmic crisis, mere reverence for a teacher cannot override the immediate kṣatriya obligation to protect one’s side; ethical hesitation must be weighed against the catastrophic consequence of inaction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports counsel urging the Pāṇḍavas to abandon the restraint of ‘we must not kill our guru’ and to take decisive measures to defeat Droṇa, lest he annihilate them in battle.