Shloka 74
भीमस्य जलान्वेषणं तथा वनविश्रान्तिः
Bhīma’s Search for Water and the Forest Halt
दक्षिणांश्नापि पञज्चालान् यावच्चर्मण्वती नदी । द्रोणेन चैवं ट्रपद: परिभूयाथ पालित:,तदनन्तर राजा द्र॒ुपद दीनतापूर्ण हृदयसे गंगा-तटवर्ती अनेक जनपदोंसे युक्त माकन्दीपुरीमें तथा नगरोंमें श्रेष्ठ काम्पिल्य नगरमें निवास एवं चर्मण्वती नदीके दक्षिणतटवर्ती पंचालदेशका शासन करने लगे। इस प्रकार द्रोणाचार्यने द्रपदको परास्त करके पुनः उनकी रक्षा की
Vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca |
Dakṣiṇāṃś cāpi Pañcālān yāvac Carmaṇvatī nadī |
Droṇena caivaṃ Drupadaḥ paribhūyātha pālitaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: Drona, having thus humbled King Drupada, left him in possession of the southern part of the Pañcāla country up to the river Carmaṇvatī. The episode underscores a hard ethical tension: victory is used not merely to destroy an enemy but to impose a settlement—humiliation followed by protection—revealing how power can both punish and preserve, and how enmity is reshaped into a constrained political order.
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a nuanced use of power: conquest is paired with restraint. Drona humiliates Drupada to enforce a new order, yet preserves him by allowing rule over a defined territory—suggesting that even in conflict, governance may aim at controlled stability rather than total annihilation.
After defeating Drupada, Drona sets a territorial limit: Drupada retains the southern Pañcāla region up to the Carmaṇvatī river. Drupada is thus subdued (paribhūya) but also maintained/protected (pālitaḥ) within this reduced domain.