Shloka 25

Adhyāya 16: Saṃśaptaka-vrata and the Diversion of Arjuna (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय १६)

Devanagari script

त॑ शूरमार्यव्रतिनं मन्त्रास्त्रेषु कृतश्रमम्‌ चक्ररक्षं परामृद्नात्‌ कुमारं द्विजपुड़व:,परंतु द्विजश्रेष्ठ द्रोणाचार्यने शूर, आर्यव्रती एवं मन्त्रास्त्रविद्यामें परिश्रम किये हुए चक्र- रक्षक कुमारको परास्त कर दिया

Transliteration

taṁ śūram āryavratinaṁ mantrāstreṣu kṛtaśramaṁ cakrarakṣaṁ parāmṛdnāt kumāraṁ dvijapuṅgavaḥ

Translation

तब द्विजश्रेष्ठ द्रोणाचार्य ने उस शूर, आर्यव्रती, मन्त्रास्त्र-विद्या में परिश्रम से सिद्ध, और रथचक्र-रक्षक कुमार को परास्त कर दिया।

Word by Word

सःhe (that one)

शूरम्brave

आर्यव्रतिनम्one observing noble vows

मन्त्रास्त्रेषुin mantra-weapons (enchanted missiles)

कृतश्रमम्one who has exerted himself / well-trained

चक्ररक्षम्wheel-guard (protector of the formation)

परामृद्नात्overpowered / crushed / defeated

कुमारम्the young prince / youth

द्विजपुङ्गवःthe best of the twice-born (Brahmin-foremost)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇācārya (implied by dvijapuṅgavaḥ; explicitly in the Hindi gloss)

cakra (chariot wheel)

kumāra (the young chariot-wheel-guard; unnamed in this verse)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the tension between personal virtue (ārya-vrata), disciplined effort (kṛta-śrama), and the harsh outcomes of war: ethical character and training do not guarantee victory when confronted by a superior master and the momentum of battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Droṇa, described as the foremost among the twice-born, subdues a brave young warrior assigned as the protector of the chariot-wheel, despite the youth’s disciplined vows and expertise in mantra-based weaponry.