Shloka 37

धृतराष्ट्रस्य मूर्च्छा तथा द्रोणविषयकप्रश्नाः

Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Fainting and Questions Concerning Droṇa

Devanagari script

कथं संजय दुर्धर्षमनाधृष्यशोबलम्‌

Transliteration

kathaṃ sañjaya durdharṣam anādhṛṣyaśobalam

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra dit : «Comment, ô Sañjaya, pourrait-on venir à bout de cet être redoutable—difficile à soutenir et rayonnant d’une splendeur inattaquable ?»

Word by Word

• कथम्: how?
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम्
• Form: Avyaya (interrogative adverb)

• संजय: O Sañjaya
• Type: Noun
• Root: संजय
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• दुर्धर्षम्: hard to assail/overcome
• दुर्धर्षम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्धर्ष
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अनाधृष्य: unassailable, not to be attacked
• अनाधृष्य: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनाधृष्य
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular (agreeing with implied noun)

• शोबलम्: Śobala (proper name)
• शोबलम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोबल
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Sañjaya

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a ruler’s anxious dependence on truthful counsel: Dhṛtarāṣṭra, unable to see the battlefield, seeks clarity from Sañjaya about how an apparently invincible warrior could be confronted. It underscores the ethical tension between perceived might and the uncertain outcomes shaped by strategy, destiny, and dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Drona Parva’s battle narration, Dhṛtarāṣṭra questions Sañjaya about the handling of a warrior described as extremely formidable and unassailable in splendor. The line functions as a prompt for Sañjaya to explain the battlefield developments that challenge Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s assumptions about invincibility.