Shloka 143

Devanagari script

रश्मिभिर्भास्करो राजंस्तमांसीव समन्तत: । प्रजापालक नरेश! जैसे सूर्य अपनी किरणोंद्वारा चारों ओरके अन्धकारको दूर कर देते हैं, उसी प्रकार द्रोणाचार्य वहाँ क्षत्रियोंके प्राण लेने लगे

Transliteration

raśmibhir bhāskaro rājan tamāṃsīva samantataḥ | prajā-pālaka nareśa! yathā sūryaḥ sva-raśmibhiś caturdiśaṃ tamaḥ apanayati, tathā droṇācāryo tatra kṣatriyāṇāṃ prāṇān apāharat |

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai raja, pelindung rakyat! Seperti matahari dengan sinarnya menghalau kegelapan ke segala arah, demikianlah Droṇācārya di sana mulai merenggut nyawa para kṣatriya.”

Word by Word

• रश्मिभिः: by (his) rays
• रश्मिभिः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रश्मि
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• भास्करः: the sun
• भास्करः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भास्कर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• तमांसि: darknesses (masses of darkness)
• तमांसि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: तमस्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• इव: as/like
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

• समन्ततः: on all sides, all around
• समन्ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: समन्ततः

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by address rājan/nareśa/prajā-pālaka)
• Droṇācārya
• Sūrya (the Sun, as simile)
• Kṣatriyas

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical tension of war: extraordinary brilliance and power (likened to the sun) can be turned toward destruction. It invites reflection on how dharma and royal/warrior duty can become morally fraught when the battlefield turns virtues like strength and skill into instruments of mass death.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to the king that Droṇācārya is cutting down kṣatriya warriors on the battlefield. The comparison to the sun dispersing darkness emphasizes Droṇa’s overwhelming force and dominance in that moment of the war.