Shloka 20

Devanagari script

सेनां दुरोदरं विद्धि शरानक्षान्‌ विशाम्पते । ग्लहं च सैन्धवं राजंस्तत्र द्यूतस्य निश्चय:,तात! (असली जूआ तो वहाँ हो रहा है) जहाँ तुम्हारे बहुत-से कौरवयोद्धा खड़े हैं। इस सेनाको ही तुम जुआरी समझो। प्रजानाथ! बाणोंको ही पासे मान लो। राजन! सिंधुराज जयद्रथको ही बाजी या दाँव समझो। उसीपर जूएकी हार-जीतका फैसला होगा

Transliteration

senāṁ durōdaraṁ viddhi śarān akṣān viśāṁpate | glahaṁ ca saindhavaṁ rājan tatra dyūtasya niścayaḥ, tāta ||

Translation

Droṇa said: “Know this army to be the reckless gambler, O lord of the people. Take the arrows as the dice. And, O king, regard the Saindhava (Jayadratha) as the stake in this game—upon him the decision of victory or defeat in this ‘gambling’ will be made, dear one.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'senā', 'meaning': 'army

• host of troops'}, {'term': 'durōdara', 'meaning': 'reckless gambler

• one who gambles ruinously'}, {'term': 'viddhi', 'meaning': 'know

• understand (imperative of √vid)'}, {'term': 'śara', 'meaning': 'arrow'}, {'term': 'akṣa', 'meaning': 'die (dice)

• also ‘axle’ in other contexts—here clearly dice'}, {'term': 'viśāṁpati', 'meaning': 'lord of the people

• ruler/king (vocative)'}, {'term': 'glaha', 'meaning': 'stake

• the thing put at risk in gambling'}, {'term': 'saindhava', 'meaning': 'the Sindhu-king

• Jayadratha'}, {'term': 'rājan', 'meaning': 'O king (vocative)'}, {'term': 'dyūta', 'meaning': 'gambling

• game of dice (metaphor for hazardous contest)'}, {'term': 'niścaya', 'meaning': 'decision

• outcome'}, {'term': 'tāta', 'meaning': 'dear one

Speaker

द्रोण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Droṇa
• Jayadratha (Saindhava, Sindhu-rāja)
• army (senā)
• arrows (śara)
• dice (akṣa)
• stake/wager (glaha)
• dyūta (game of dice)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Droṇa frames the battle as a dice-game to highlight moral and practical peril: war is a high-risk contest where outcomes hinge on a single critical ‘stake’ (Jayadratha). The metaphor recalls the destructive power of gambling—suggesting that reckless choices and fixation on a wager can decide ruin or victory.

What is happening in the narrative?

Droṇa instructs the king/commander to view the ongoing combat as a decisive gamble: the army is the gambler, arrows are the dice, and Jayadratha is the wager. The implication is tactical—Jayadratha’s role is pivotal, and the battle’s immediate outcome will be determined around him.