Shloka 31

Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 25 — Bhīma’s Disruption of Elephant Formations and Bhagadatta’s Shock Advance

Devanagari script

प्रवपन्निव बीजानि बीजकाले नरर्षभ । द्रौणायनिद्रौपदेयं शरवर्षैरवाकिरत्‌,नरश्रेष्ठ! तब द्रोणपुत्र भी द्रौपदीकुमार प्रतिविन्ध्यपर बाणोंकी वर्षा करने लगा, मानो किसान बीज बोनेके समयपर खेतमें बीज डाल रहा हो

Transliteration

pravapann iva bījāni bījakāle nararṣabha | drauṇāyanidraupadeyaṁ śaravarṣair avākirat ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O bull among men, just as seeds are scattered at sowing time, so did the son of Droṇa shower Draupadī’s son Prativindhya with a rain of arrows.”

Word by Word

• प्रवपन्: sowing (while sowing)
• प्रवपन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र√वप्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular, शतृ-प्रत्यय (वर्तमान कृदन्त), परस्मैपदी

• इव: as if, like
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

• बीजानि: seeds
• बीजानि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: बीज
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• बीजकाले: at seed-time (time of sowing)
• बीजकाले: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: बीजकाल
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• नरर्षभ: O bull among men
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरर्षभ
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• द्रौणायनि: Draunayani (son of Drona, i.e., Ashvatthaman)
• द्रौणायनि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रौणायनि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• द्रौपदेयम्: the son of Draupadi (Draupadeya)
• द्रौपदेयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रौपदेय
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• शरवर्षैः: with showers of arrows
• शरवर्षैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शरवर्ष
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• अवाकिरत्: showered, scattered down upon
• Type: Verb
• Root: अव√कॄ (अवकिरति)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Aśvatthāman (Drauṇāyani, son of Droṇa)
• Prativindhya (a Draupadeya; son of Draupadī)
• arrows (śara)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses a farming simile to portray how methodical and unhesitating martial skill becomes in war. It invites reflection on kṣatriya-duty performed with discipline, yet directed toward destruction—highlighting the ethical strain between righteous role-based action and the suffering it produces.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Aśvatthāman (Droṇa’s son) unleashes a dense barrage of arrows upon a son of Draupadī (identified here as Prativindhya), likening the arrow-shower to a farmer scattering seeds at sowing time.