Shloka 45

Devanagari script

तथेतरे महेष्वासा: सौभद्रं युध्यपातयन्‌ । अल्पे च कारणे कृष्ण हतो गाण्डीवधन्चना

Transliteration

tathetare maheṣvāsāḥ saubhadraṁ yuddhyapātayan | alpe ca kāraṇe kṛṣṇa hato gāṇḍīvadhanvanā ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : «De même, les autres grands archers pressèrent Saubhadra (Abhimanyu) au combat et le firent tomber. Et, ô Kṛṣṇa, pour un prétexte dérisoire, le porteur du Gāṇḍīva (Arjuna) fut mis à mort.»

Word by Word

तथाthus, so

इतरेthe others

महेष्वासाःgreat archers

सौभद्रम्the son of Subhadrā (Abhimanyu)

युधिin battle

अपातयन्caused to fall, struck down

अल्पेin a small (matter)

चand

कारणेin/for a cause, reason

कृष्णO Kṛṣṇa

हतःslain

गाण्डीवधन्वनाby the wielder of Gāṇḍīva (Arjuna)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Saubhadra (Abhimanyu)

Kṛṣṇa

Gāṇḍīva

Gāṇḍīvadhanvan (Arjuna)

other great bowmen (Kaurava warriors collectively)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how moral collapse in war can hinge on “small reasons”: when fighters accept flimsy pretexts, violence escalates beyond dharma. It invites reflection on proportionality, just cause, and the ethical danger of rationalizing harm.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that many mighty archers together overwhelmed Saubhadra (Abhimanyu) and brought him down in battle. He then addresses Kṛṣṇa, noting that the bearer of the Gāṇḍīva (Arjuna) was slain on a slight pretext—framing the event as ethically troubling and tragic.