Shloka 48

Devanagari script

धृष्टद्युम्नो द्रोणमृत्युरिति विप्रथितं वच: । मद्वधाय श्रुतो5प्येष लोके चाप्यतिविश्रुत:,'धृष्टद्युम्न द्रोणकी मौत है, यह बात सर्वत्र फैल चुकी है। मेरे वधके लिये ही उसका जन्म हुआ है। यह भी सब लोगोंने सुन रखा है। धृष्टद्युम्न स्वयं भी संसारमें अपनी वीरताके लिये विख्यात है

Transliteration

dhṛṣṭadyumno droṇamṛtyur iti viprathitaṃ vacaḥ | madvadhāya śruto 'py eṣa loke cāpy ativisrutaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : «La rumeur s’est répandue partout : “Dṛṣṭadyumna est la mort de Droṇa.” On sait aussi, dans le peuple, qu’il est né dans le seul dessein de me tuer ; et Dṛṣṭadyumna lui-même est renommé dans le monde pour sa prouesse.»

Word by Word

धृष्टद्युम्नःDhrishtadyumna

द्रोणमृत्युःthe death of Drona / Drona's slayer

इतिthus

विप्रथितम्spread abroad, widely known

वचःstatement, report

मद्वधायfor my killing

श्रुतःheard, known

अपिalso, even

एषःthis (man)

लोकेin the world

चand

अपिalso

अतिविश्रुतःvery famous, widely renowned

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Dhṛṣṭadyumna

Droṇa

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 public reputation and prophetic narratives shape ethical and strategic perceptions in war: a warrior becomes socially ‘fixed’ as another’s destined slayer, and that widespread belief influences fear, resolve, and the moral framing of impending violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator reports a widely circulated claim that Dhṛṣṭadyumna is fated to be Droṇa’s killer, that his birth is known to be for Droṇa’s death, and that Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s valor is already renowned—setting the stage for the tension surrounding Droṇa’s vulnerability and the coming conflict.