Shloka 71

द्रोणवध-प्रश्नः

Droṇa’s Fall: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Inquiry

Devanagari script

इयेष द्वारकां हन्तुं कृत्स्नां जेतुं च मेदिनीम्‌ निवारितस्तत: प्राजै: सुहृद्धिर्हितकाम्यया,भगवान्‌ श्रीकृष्णके हाथोंसे जब युद्धमें पाण्ड्यदेशके राजा तथा वर्तमान नरेशके पिता मारे गये, पाण्ड्यराजधानीका फाटक तोड़-फोड़ दिया गया और सारे बन्धु-बान्धव भाग गये, उस समय जिसने भीष्म, द्रोण, परशुराम तथा कृपाचार्यसे अस्त्रविद्या सीखकर उसमें रुकमी, कर्ण, अर्जुन और श्रीकृष्णकी समानता प्राप्त कर ली; फिर द्वारकाको नष्ट करने और सारी पृथ्वीपर विजय पानेका संकल्प किया; यह देख विद्वान्‌ सुहृदोंने हितकी कामना रखकर जिसे वैसा दुःसाहस करनेसे रोक दिया और अब जो वैरभाव छोड़कर अपने राज्यका शासन कर रहा है और जिसके रथपर सागरके चिह्नसे युक्त ध्वजा फहराती है, पराक्रमरूपी धनका आश्रय लेनेवाले उस बलवान राजा पाण्ड्यने अपने दिव्य धनुषकी टंकार करते हुए वैदूर्यमणिकी जालीसे आच्छादित तथा चन्द्रकिरणोंके समान श्वेत घोड़ोंद्वारा द्रोणाचार्यपर धावा किया

Transliteration

iyēṣa dvārakāṁ hantuṁ kṛtsnāṁ jetuṁ ca mēdinīm | nivāritas tataḥ prājaiḥ suhṛdbhīr hitakāmyayā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: He resolved to destroy Dvārakā and to conquer the entire earth; but then, out of a desire for his welfare, wise well-wishers restrained him from that reckless course. (In the surrounding narrative, this is presented as a moral turning-point: ambition and vengeance are checked by counsel, and the king is brought back toward responsible rule even amid the pressures of war.)

Word by Word

इयेषdesired, intended

द्वारकाम्Dvaraka

हन्तुम्to kill, to destroy

कृत्स्नाम्entire, whole

जेतुम्to conquer

चand

मेदिनीम्the earth

निवारितःwas restrained, was prevented

ततःthen, thereafter

प्राजैःby the wise (men)

सुहृद्भिःby friends, well-wishers

हितकाम्ययाwith desire for (his) welfare

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dvārakā

Earth (Medinī)

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?

Unchecked ambition and vengeance can lead to adharma; the verse highlights the ethical role of wise counsel and well-wishers who restrain a ruler from destructive, hubristic plans, redirecting him toward welfare-oriented governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a king formed an extreme resolve—destroying Dvārakā and conquering the whole earth—but prudent friends, seeking his good, prevented him from acting on that rash intention; the broader passage frames this as background to his later conduct in the war.