Shloka 20

Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 49: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Lament and Strategic Foreboding after Abhimanyu’s Fall

Devanagari script

आसीत्‌ परमको हर्षस्तावकानां विशाम्पते । इतरेषां तु वीराणां नेत्रेभ्य: प्रापतज्जलम्‌,प्रजानाथ! आपके पुत्रोंको तो बड़ा हर्ष हुआ; परंतु पाण्डववीरोंके नेत्रोंसे आँसू बहने लगा

Transliteration

āsīt paramako harṣas tāvakānāṃ viśāmpate | itareṣāṃ tu vīrāṇāṃ netrebhyaḥ prāpatad jalam, prajānātha |

Translation

Sañjaya said: O lord of the people, an exceedingly great joy arose among your sons’ party; but from the eyes of the other heroes—the Pāṇḍava warriors—tears began to fall.

Word by Word

• आसीत्: was
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (imperfect), 3, singular, परस्मैपद

• परमकः: very great, extreme
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परमक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• हर्षः: joy, delight
• Type: Noun
• Root: हर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• तावकानाम्: of your people/sons (Kauravas)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तावक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, genitive, plural

• विशाम्पते: O lord of the people (king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विशाम्पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

• इतरेषाम्: of the others
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इतर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, genitive, plural

• तु: but
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• वीराणाम्: of the heroes
• Type: Noun
• Root: वीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, genitive, plural

• नेत्रेभ्यः: from (their) eyes
• नेत्रेभ्यः: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: neuter, ablative, plural

• प्रापतत्: fell down, flowed
• Type: Verb
• Root: पत् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (imperfect), 3, singular, परस्मैपद

• जलम्: water (tears)
• जलम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: जल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: neuter, nominative, singular

• प्रजानाथ: O lord of subjects
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजानाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by vocatives viśāmpate, prajānātha)
• Kauravas (tāvakāḥ)
• Pāṇḍava warriors (itare vīrāḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the moral and emotional asymmetry of war: one side’s elation is inseparable from the other side’s suffering. It invites reflection on dharma by showing that battlefield ‘success’ carries a human cost that cannot be ethically ignored.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava camp is filled with intense joy at a favorable development, while the opposing Pāṇḍava heroes are overwhelmed with sorrow, tears falling from their eyes.