Shloka 15
Chapter 137: Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki) Slays Somadatta; Yudhiṣṭhira Redirected from Droṇa
Devanagari script
पतड्जा इव वह्रिं ते प्राविशन्नल्पचेतस:
Transliteration
pataṅgā iva vahniṁ te prāviśann alpacetasaḥ
Translation
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Those men of yours, of little discernment, rushed into the blazing fire as moths do—driven by blind impulse rather than wise counsel.”
Word by Word
पतङ्गाःmoths/insects
पतङ्गाः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootपतङ्ग
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
इवlike/as
इव:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootइव
वह्निम्fire
वह्निम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootवह्नि
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
तेthey (those)
ते:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootयुष्मद्
Form—, Nominative, Plural
प्राविशन्entered
प्राविशन्:
TypeVerb
Rootप्र + विश्
FormImperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Plural, Parasmaipada
अल्पचेतसःof little understanding/foolish
अल्पचेतसः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootअल्पचेतस्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
Speaker
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Characters & Entities
ध
धृतराष्ट्र (Dhṛtarāṣṭra)व
वह्नि (fire)प
पतङ्ग (moths)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Cross References
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
Impulsive courage without discernment becomes self-destruction; ethical leadership requires guiding people away from ruinous choices rather than letting them be consumed by passion and delusion.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra laments that his own men, lacking sound judgment, plunged into deadly danger as if irresistibly drawn—like moths entering a flame—highlighting the tragic momentum of the war.