Shloka 3
उपायैः पूर्ववधकथनम् / Strategic Justifications for Prior Eliminations
केडरक्षन् दक्षिणं चक्रमाचार्यस्य महाहवे । के चोत्तरमरक्षन्त निघ्नतः शात्रवान् बहून्,उस महासमरमें बहुसंख्यक शत्रुयोद्धाओंका संहार करनेवाले आचार्य द्रोणके दायें चक्रकी किन लोगोंने रक्षा की तथा किन लोगोंने उनके रथके बायें पहियेकी रखवाली की?
ke rakṣan dakṣiṇaṁ cakram ācāryasya mahāhave | ke cottaram arakṣanta nighnataḥ śātravān bahūn ||
Sañjaya said: “In that great battle, while the preceptor Droṇa was cutting down many hostile warriors, who guarded the right wheel of his chariot, and who protected the left wheel?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the strategic and ethical weight of protecting a principal commander in war: a leader’s prowess depends not only on personal valor but also on coordinated support and disciplined guardianship by allies.
Sañjaya, narrating the battle, asks for details of Droṇa’s immediate protection—specifically, which warriors guarded the right and left sides (wheels) of Droṇa’s chariot while Droṇa was slaughtering many enemies in the great fight.