Shloka 4

Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)

Devanagari script

अर्जुन रथवंशेन द्रोणपुत्रपुरोगमा:

Transliteration

arjuna rathavaṁśena droṇaputrapurogamāḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: Arjuna’s chariot-line advanced, with Droṇa’s son at its head—signaling how the battle’s momentum was being driven by leading champions and their retinues, where prowess and command shaped the day’s unfolding violence and its moral stakes.

Word by Word

• अर्जुन: Arjuna
• अर्जुन: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्जुन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• रथवंशेन: by/with the line (succession) of chariots
• रथवंशेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथवंश
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• द्रोणपुत्रपुरोगमाः: having Drona's son (Ashvatthaman) in front; led by Drona's son
• द्रोणपुत्रपुरोगमाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरोगम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Arjuna
• Aśvatthāman (Droṇa’s son)
• chariot-line/formation (rathavaṁśa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how warfare is shaped by organized formations and decisive leadership; ethically, it points to the weight of responsibility borne by commanders and foremost warriors whose choices intensify or restrain destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a battlefield movement: a chariot-column associated with Arjuna is described, and Droṇa’s son Aśvatthāman is noted as being at the front, indicating the advance or prominence of that leading fighter within the action.