Shloka 20

अभिमन्युना दुःशासनस्य ताडनम्

Abhimanyu’s Rebuke and Wounding of Duḥśāsana; Karṇa’s Counter-volley

Devanagari script

एवमुक्तास्तु ते राज्ञा सात्वतीपुत्रमभ्ययु: । संरब्धास्ते जिघांसन्तो भारद्वाजस्य पश्यत:,राजा दुर्योधनके ऐसा कहनेपर सब वीर अत्यन्त कुपित हो सुभद्राकुमार अभिमन्युको मार डालनेकी इच्छासे द्रोणाचार्यके देखते-देखते उसपर टूट पड़े

Transliteration

evam uktās tu te rājñā sātvatīputram abhyayuḥ | saṃrabdhās te jighāṃsanto bhāradvājasya paśyataḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : Ainsi interpellés par le roi, ces guerriers se ruèrent sur le fils de Sātvati. Furieux et résolus à le tuer, ils fondirent sur lui sous les yeux mêmes de Bhāradvāja (Droṇa).

Word by Word

एवम्thus

उक्ताःhaving been spoken to / addressed

तुbut/indeed

तेthey (those warriors)

राज्ञाby the king

सात्वती-पुत्रम्the son of Sātvati (Abhimanyu)

अभ्ययुःrushed upon / attacked

संरब्धाःenraged / agitated

तेthey

जिघांसन्तःwishing to kill

भारद्वाजस्यof Bhāradvāja (Droṇa)

पश्यतःwhile (he was) seeing / in the presence of

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Duryodhana

Abhimanyu

Sātvati (lineage reference)

Bhāradvāja (Droṇa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how anger and the pressure of royal command can drive warriors toward excessive, collective violence, raising an ethical tension between battlefield duty and restraint (dharma) even under a leader’s orders.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the king’s words, the Kaurava warriors surge together against Abhimanyu, determined to kill him, doing so openly in Droṇa’s presence.