Shloka 34

Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 94: Sātyaki–Sudarśana Yuddha (सात्यकि–सुदर्शन युद्ध)

Devanagari script

अनीकान्यर्दयन्‌ युद्धे त्वरित: श्वेतवाहन:

Transliteration

anīkāny ardayan yuddhe tvaritaḥ śvetavāhanaḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: In the thick of battle, the swift warrior with the white steeds pressed hard upon the opposing battle-formations, crushing and driving them back with urgent speed—an image of relentless martial momentum amid the moral weight of fratricidal war.

Word by Word

• अनीकानि: armies, battle-formations
• अनीकानि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनीक
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• अर्दयन्: crushing, tormenting
• अर्दयन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अर्द्
• Form: Present, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada, शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमान कृदन्त (present active participle), nominative masculine singular

• युद्धे: in battle
• युद्धे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: युद्ध
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• त्वरितः: hastened, swift
• त्वरितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्वरित
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• श्वेतवाहनः: the one with white steeds/vehicle (epithet)
• श्वेतवाहनः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्वेत-वाहन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śvetavāhana (Arjuna)
• battle formations (anīkāni)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the Kṣatriya ideal of decisive action in battle—swiftly confronting and breaking hostile formations—while implicitly reminding the listener that such prowess unfolds within the ethically fraught setting of a civil war, where duty and destruction coexist.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that the warrior known as Śvetavāhana—commonly understood as Arjuna, famed for his chariot drawn by white horses—moves rapidly through the battlefield, overpowering and scattering enemy troop-formations.