Shloka 26
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection
सदृशो वृष्णिवीरस्य केशवस्य महात्मन: । विक्रमश्रुतमाहात्म्यै: कथमायोधने हत:,*वृष्णिकुलके वीर महात्मा केशवके समान पराक्रमी, शास्त्रज्ष और महत्त्वशाली अभिमन्यु युद्धमें किस प्रकार मारा गया है?
sadṛśo vṛṣṇivīrasya keśavasya mahātmanaḥ | vikramaśruta-māhātmyaiḥ katham āyodhane hataḥ ||
Sanjaya said: “How was Abhimanyu—whose prowess, fame, and greatness were comparable to that of the heroic Vṛṣṇi champion, the great-souled Keśava—slain in battle?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the moral shock that a warrior of exceptional merit—likened to Kṛṣṇa in valor and stature—can still be brought down in war, prompting reflection on the fragility of life, the harshness of battlefield ethics, and the tension between proclaimed dharma and actual conduct in combat.
Sañjaya reports and frames a question about Abhimanyu’s death: despite being extraordinarily heroic and renowned—comparable to Keśava—how he was nevertheless slain in the fighting, setting up the account of the circumstances and methods by which he was killed.