Shloka 50

Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout

Devanagari script

भारद्वाज: स तान्‌ दृष्टवा शरवर्षाणि वर्षत:

Transliteration

bhāradvājaḥ sa tān dṛṣṭvā śaravarṣāṇi varṣataḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: Seeing those showers of arrows being poured down, Bhāradvāja (Droṇa’s son) beheld the onslaught and the scene of relentless violence unfolding before him.

Word by Word

• भारद्वाजः: Bharadvaja (the sage)
• भारद्वाजः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारद्वाज
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage-neutral for gerund), Invariable

• शरवर्षाणि: showers of arrows
• शरवर्षाणि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शरवर्ष
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• वर्षतः: rained down / poured forth
• वर्षतः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृष्
• Form: Present, लट्, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhāradvāja (Aśvatthāmā)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores how war escalates through reciprocal violence: the ‘rain of arrows’ symbolizes uncontrolled wrath and the ethical collapse that follows when vengeance replaces restraint.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Bhāradvāja—i.e., Aśvatthāmā—sees the ongoing showers of arrows being discharged, marking an intense phase of combat and the mounting ferocity of the episode.