Shloka 18
Dhṛtarāṣṭra–Sañjaya-saṃvādaḥ; madhyāhna-saṅgrāma-pravṛttiḥ
Dhritarashtra–Sanjaya dialogue and the midday battle escalation
तस्य द्रोणो&वधीदश्वान् शरै: संनतपर्वभि: । अष्टाभिर्भरतश्रेष्ठ सूतमेकेन पत्रिणा,भरतश्रेष्ठ! फिर द्रोणने झुकी हुई गाँठवाले आठ बाणोंद्वारा विराटके घोड़ोंकोी और एक बाणसे सारथिको मार डाला
tasya droṇo ’vadhīd aśvān śaraiḥ saṃnataparvabhiḥ | aṣṭābhir bharataśreṣṭha sūtam ekena patriṇā ||
Sañjaya said: Then Droṇa slew his horses with eight arrows whose joints were bent, and with a single feathered shaft he struck down the charioteer—O best of the Bharatas. The report underscores the ruthless precision of battlefield skill, where even non-royal agents of war (horses and driver) become targets to disable a warrior’s capacity to fight.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh ethics of war as portrayed in the epic: victory often depends on disabling an opponent’s means of fighting (chariot, horses, driver), not only dueling the principal warrior. It reflects the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension between martial effectiveness and moral cost.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Droṇa, with expert archery, kills the horses using eight arrows and then kills the charioteer with a single feathered arrow, effectively immobilizing the chariot and neutralizing its fighter’s mobility.