Shloka 453
Droṇa’s Conditional Boon: The Plan to Capture Yudhiṣṭhira (द्रोणेन युधिष्ठिरग्रहणोपायः)
भीष्मद्रोणौ हतौ श्रुत्वा कि नु जीवामि संजय । संजय! लोकसम्मानित, अस्त्रविद्याके ज्ञाता तथा युद्धदुर्मद वीरवर भीष्म और द्रोणाचार्यके मारे जानेका समाचार सुनकर मैं किसलिये जीवित रहूँ?
bhīṣma-droṇau hatau śrutvā ki nu jīvāmi sañjaya | sañjaya! loka-sammānitau astravidyā-jñau tathā yuddha-durmadau vīra-varau bhīṣmaś ca droṇaś ca mṛtau iti vārttāṃ śrutvā ahaṃ kasmāt jīveyam |
Vaiśampāyana said: “O Sañjaya, having heard that Bhīṣma and Droṇa have been slain, why should I go on living? Sañjaya—those two foremost heroes, honored by the world, masters of the science of weapons, and fierce in the pride of battle—when I hear the report that Bhīṣma and Droṇa are dead, for what reason should I remain alive?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the human cost of dharma-yuddha: even the fall of celebrated, world-honored teachers and elders can shake one’s will to live, highlighting impermanence and the moral weight of violence against revered figures.
The speaker reports an anguished reaction upon hearing that the great Kuru champions Bhīṣma and Droṇa have been killed; addressing Sañjaya, he laments that life seems pointless after the loss of such eminent warriors and teachers.