Shloka 30

Devanagari script

दुर्योधन उवाच आचार्यपुत्र यद्येतद्‌ द्विरस्त्रं न प्रयुज्यते । अन्यैर्गुरुध्ना वध्यन्तामस्त्रैरस्त्रविदां वर,दुर्योधन बोला--आचार्यपुत्र! तुम तो सम्पूर्ण अस्त्रवेत्ताओंमें श्रेष्ठ हो। यदि इस अस्त्रका दो बार प्रयोग नहीं हो सकता तो तुम दूसरे ही अस्त्रोंद्वारा इन गुरुघातियोंका वध करो

Transliteration

duryodhana uvāca

ācārya-putra yady etad dvir-astraṃ na prayujyate |

anyair guru-ghnā vadhyantām astrair astravidāṃ vara ||

Translation

Duryodhana berkata: “Wahai putra sang ācārya, wahai yang terbaik di antara para ahli senjata—jika senjata ini tak dapat dipakai dua kali, maka bunuhlah para pembunuh guru ini dengan senjata yang lain.”

Word by Word

दुर्योधनःDuryodhana

उवाचsaid

आचार्यपुत्रO teacher's son

यदिif

एतत्this

द्विःtwice

अस्त्रंweapon (missile)

नnot

प्रयुज्यतेis employed/used

अन्यैःby other (means)

गुरुध्नाःslayers of the teacher (guru-killers)

वध्यन्ताम्let (them) be slain

अस्त्रैःwith weapons

अस्त्रविदाम्of the knowers of weapons

वरO best

Speaker

दुर्योधन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Duryodhana

Aśvatthāman (implied by 'ācārya-putra')

Droṇa (implied by 'ācārya' and the charge of guru-slaying)

astra (weapon/missile)

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 appeals to loyalty and moral outrage (here, the charge of ‘guru-slaying’) are used to justify escalation in war. It also reflects the ethical tension between reverence for the teacher and the impulse toward vengeance, showing how dharma-language can be mobilized for violent ends.

What is happening in the narrative?

Duryodhana addresses Droṇa’s son Aśvatthāman, urging him to kill those deemed responsible for the preceptor’s death. If a particular astra cannot be used twice, Duryodhana commands that other weapons be used instead, pressing for immediate retaliation on the battlefield.