Shloka 6

Droṇa Encircled at Night: Coalition Advance and Battlefield Omens (द्रोणपर्यावरणं रात्रियुद्धवर्णनम्)

Devanagari script

एवमुक्तो5स्मि पार्थेन प्रतिवक्तुं न चोत्सहे,'परंतु जब कुन्तीनन्दन महाराजने इस प्रकार मुझे वहाँ जानेकी आज्ञा दे दी है, तब मैं उन्हें कोरा जवाब नहीं दे सकता--उनकी आज्ञा टाल नहीं सकता। अतः जहाँ मरणासन्न जयद्रथ खड़ा है, वहीं मैं जाऊँगा। मुझे बिना किसी संशयके धर्मराज युधिष्ठटिरकी आज्ञाके अधीन रहना चाहिये

Transliteration

evam ukto 'smi pārthena prativaktuṁ na cotsahe | parantu yadi kuntīnandano mahārājo mām evaṁ tatra gantum ājñāpayati, tadāhaṁ taṁ niruttaraṁ kartuṁ na śaknomi—tasyājñāṁ laṅghayituṁ na śaknomi | ataḥ yatra maraṇāsannaḥ jayadrathaḥ tiṣṭhati, tatraiva gamiṣyāmi | mama niḥsaṁśayaṁ dharmarāja-yudhiṣṭhirasyājñāyāḥ adhīnaṁ bhavitum ucitam ||

Translation

Sanjaya berkata: “Walau didesak oleh Partha (Arjuna), aku tak sanggup membalas dengan kata-kata. Namun ketika raja putra Kunti telah memerintahkanku pergi ke sana, aku tak dapat kembali dengan jawaban hampa, dan tak patut mengabaikan titahnya. Karena itu aku akan menuju tempat Jayadratha berdiri, di ambang maut. Tanpa ragu, sudah semestinya aku tetap berada di bawah perintah Dharmaraja Yudhishthira.”

Word by Word

• {'evam': 'thus, in this manner', "uktaḥ / ukto 'smi": 'having been spoken to

• I have been addressed', 'pārthena': 'by Partha (Arjuna)', 'prativaktum': 'to reply back, to retort', 'na ... utsahe': 'I do not dare / I am not able (from lack of resolve)', 'kuntīnandanaḥ': 'son of Kunti (here: Yudhishthira)', 'mahārājaḥ': 'great king', 'ājñāpayati / ājñā': 'commands

• command', 'niruttaram': 'without an answer

• empty-handed in reply', 'laṅghayitum': 'to transgress, to disregard', 'ataḥ': 'therefore', 'yatra ... tatraiva': 'where ... there itself', 'maraṇāsannaḥ': 'near death, at the point of dying', 'jayadrathaḥ': 'Jayadratha (king of Sindhu)', 'gamiṣyāmi': 'I shall go', 'niḥsaṁśayam': 'without doubt', 'dharmarājaḥ': 'the king of dharma (Yudhishthira)', 'adhīna': 'subject to, under the authority of', 'ucitam': 'proper, fitting'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Partha (Arjuna)
• Kuntinandan (Yudhishthira)
• Dharmaraja Yudhishthira
• Jayadratha

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage emphasizes dharmic restraint and obedience: one should not speak rashly in reply, and one should honor the legitimate command of a righteous authority (here, Yudhishthira), even amid the pressures of war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports that although Arjuna presses him, he hesitates to retort; however, because Yudhishthira has ordered him to go, he resolves to proceed to the spot where Jayadratha is standing, described as being near death, and to act under Yudhishthira’s authority.