Mahabharata (Gita Press) 7.21.61 - Drona Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 61
द्रोणविक्रमदर्शनम् / The Display of Droṇa’s Onslaught and the Debate on Pāṇḍava Regrouping
तांस्तथा भृशसंरब्धान् पञ्चालान् मत्स्यकेकयान् | सृञ्जयान् पाण्डवांश्वैव द्रोणो व्यक्षो भयद् बली
tāṁs tathā bhṛśa-saṁrabdhān pañcālān matsya-kekayān | sṛñjayān pāṇḍavāṁś caiva droṇo vyakṣobhayad balī ||
Sanjaya said: Seeing the Pāñcālas, Matsyas, Kekayas, the Sṛñjayas, and the Pāṇḍavas inflamed with fierce wrath, the mighty Drona threw them into turmoil—shaking their ranks and resolve amid the press of battle. The verse shows how anger in war can be mastered by superior discipline, strategy, and force, turning passion into disarray.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a battlefield ethic: uncontrolled anger, even when righteous, can be exploited by a steadier and more skilled commander. Strength joined with discipline and tactical clarity can convert an opponent’s fury into confusion.
Sañjaya reports that Droṇa, facing allied forces of the Pāṇḍavas (Pañcālas, Matsyas, Kekayas, Sṛñjayas, and the Pāṇḍavas themselves) who are highly enraged, powerfully disrupts them—unsettling their formation and momentum in the fight.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Mahabharata (Gita Press) in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.