Shloka 34
द्रौणि-पार्षतयोर्युद्धम् | The Duel of Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi) and Dhṛṣṭadyumna (Pārṣata
शंखशब्दं च कुर्वाणौ युयुधाते परस्परम् । महाराज! वे परस्पर शस्त्रोंकी वर्षा करके एक-दूसरेको दग्ध करते, क्रोधसे आँखें फाड़-फाड़कर देखते, कभी हँसते और कभी बारंबार एक-दूसरेको डाँटते एवं शंखनाद करते हुए परस्पर जूझ रहे थे || ३२-३३ $ ।। तस्य भीम: पुनश्चापं मुष्टी चिच्छेद मारिष,आर्य! भीमसेनने पुनः कर्णके धनुषको मुट्ठी पकड़नेकी जगहसे काट डाला, शंखके समान श्वेत रंगवाले उसके घोड़ोंको भी बाणोंद्वारा यमलोक पहुँचा दिया और उसके सारथिको भी मारकर रथकी बैठकसे नीचे गिरा दिया
śaṅkhaśabdaṃ ca kurvāṇau yuyudhāte parasparam | mahārāja! te paraspara-śastrāṇāṃ varṣaṃ kṛtvā anyonyaṃ dagdhavantau, krodhād akṣīṇi vidārya vidārya paśyantau, kadācid hasantau kadācid bhūyaḥ bhūyaḥ anyonyaṃ tarjayantau ca śaṅkhanādaṃ kurvāṇau parasparaṃ yuyudhāte || tasya bhīmaḥ punaś cāpaṃ muṣṭiṃ ciccheda mārīṣa | ārya! bhīmasenena punaḥ karṇasya dhanuḥ muṣṭi-grahaṇa-deśāt chinnaṃ, śaṅkha-sadṛśa-śveta-varṇān aśvān api bāṇaiḥ yama-lokaṃ prāpayām āsa, sārathiṃ ca hatvā ratha-niṣadāt adhaḥ pātayām āsa ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, the two warriors fought each other while sounding their conches. They rained weapons upon one another as though to scorch the other, staring with eyes widened in wrath—now laughing, now repeatedly taunting and rebuking each other—still battling as they blew their conches. Then Bhīma again cut Karṇa’s bow at the grip, O venerable one. He also dispatched Karṇa’s conch-white horses to Yama’s realm with his arrows, and after slaying the charioteer he hurled him down from the chariot-seat.” Ethically, the passage highlights how anger and pride intensify violence in war: the combatants’ taunts and laughter show the mind’s agitation, while Bhīma’s decisive strikes (bow, horses, charioteer) demonstrate the ruthless efficiency that battle can demand, even as it raises the tragic cost of dharma’s breakdown in fratricidal conflict.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage underscores how krodha (anger) and competitive pride inflame conflict: even skilled warriors become driven by taunts, laughter, and threats, and the battlefield rewards decisive, often ruthless action. It invites reflection on the ethical cost of war—how quickly human dignity and restraint can be consumed when dharma is eclipsed by vengeance and victory.
Sañjaya describes a fierce duel marked by conch-blasts and mutual weapon-showers. Bhīma gains the upper hand by severing Karṇa’s bow at the grip, then killing Karṇa’s white horses with arrows and slaying the charioteer, causing him to fall from the chariot-seat—thereby crippling Karṇa’s mobility and immediate fighting capacity.