Shloka 543
द्रोणपुत्रस्याग्नेयास्त्रप्रयोगः — अर्जुनस्य ब्राह्मास्त्रप्रतिघातः — व्यासोपदेशः
Aśvatthāmā’s Agneyāstra, Arjuna’s Brāhmāstra Counter, and Vyāsa’s Instruction
सर्वतः संवृतो योधै: शूरैश्वन रथसत्तमै: । 'ये पांचालराज ट्रुपदके पुत्र धृष्टद्युम्म, जो आचार्य द्रोणके साथ जूझ रहे हैं, हमारे रथियोंमें श्रेष्ठठम शूरवीर योद्धाओंद्वारा चारों ओरसे घिर गये हैं
sarvataḥ saṃvṛto yodhaiḥ śūraiś ca na rathasattamaiḥ | ye pāñcālarāja-drupadasya putro dhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ, yo ācārya-droṇena saha yudhyate, sa asmākaṃ rathināṃ śreṣṭhatamaiḥ śūravīra-yodhaiḥ caturdiśaṃ parivṛto 'bhavat ||
Sañjaya said: On every side he was hemmed in by warriors—valiant men, and indeed by the finest of chariot-fighters. That Dhṛṣṭadyumna, son of Drupada, king of the Pāñcālas, who was engaged in combat with the preceptor Droṇa, was surrounded from all directions by our most excellent heroic rathas, as the battle tightened around him and the struggle for advantage grew ruthless.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical pressure of kṣatriya-dharma in war: prowess and strategy (here, encirclement by elite rathas) can overwhelm even a prominent commander. It also underscores the tragic moral complexity of fighting around revered figures like Droṇa—where duty, loyalty, and the brutal logic of battle collide.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Dhṛṣṭadyumna—Drupada’s son and a leading Pāñcāla warrior—while fighting Droṇa, becomes surrounded on all sides by the Kaurava side’s foremost chariot-warriors, indicating a concentrated attempt to trap and neutralize him amid the larger battle.