Shloka 40
ततो बाणमयं वर्ष द्रोणपुत्रस्य मूर्थनि । अवासृजदमेयात्मा पाज्चाल्यो रथिनां वर:,तत्पश्चात् अमेय आत्मबलसे सम्पन्न, रथियोंमें श्रेष्ठ पांचालपुत्र धृष्टद्युम्नने अश्वत्थामाके मस्तकपर बाणोंकी वर्षा आरम्भ कर दी
tato bāṇamayaṃ varṣaṃ droṇaputrasya mūrdhani | avāsṛjad ameyātmā pāñcālyo rathināṃ varaḥ ||
Sañjaya dit : Alors le prince des Pāñcāla, Dhṛṣṭadyumna—d’un esprit sans mesure et le premier des combattants en char—déchaîna une pluie de flèches sur la tête du fils de Droṇa (Aśvatthāmā).
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the relentless momentum of kṣatriya warfare: excellence, resolve, and tactical aggression are exercised as part of battlefield duty. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension—dharma in war is not serene; it is enacted amid violence, rivalry, and the necessity to confront formidable opponents.
Sañjaya reports that Dhṛṣṭadyumna, the Pāñcāla prince and a leading chariot-fighter, begins a fierce assault by showering Aśvatthāmā (Droṇa’s son) with a dense volley of arrows, striking toward his head—signaling an intensification of their combat.