Shloka 44
तथैव चेदिमत्स्येषु पज्चालेषु तथैव च । हतेषु त्रिषु वीरेषु ट्रपदस्य च नप्तृषु,विराट, द्रुपद, केकय, चेदि, मत्स्य और पांचाल योद्धाओं तथा राजा द्रुपदके तीनों वीर पौत्रोंके मारे जानेपर द्रोणाचार्यका वह कर्म देखकर क्रोध और दुःखसे भरे हुए महामनस्वी धष्टद्युम्नने रथियोंके बीचमें इस प्रकार शपथ खायी
sañjaya uvāca | tathaiva cedi-matsyeṣu pāñcāleṣu tathaiva ca | hateṣu triṣu vīreṣu drupadasya ca naptṛṣu ||
Sañjaya said: “So it was among the Cedis and Matsyas, and so it was among the Pāñcālas as well. When Drupada’s three heroic grandsons had been slain, Dṛṣṭadyumna—high-minded yet overwhelmed by grief and anger on seeing Droṇa’s deed—took a solemn vow in the midst of the chariot-warriors.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how battlefield actions generate powerful moral-emotional consequences: the killing of close kin provokes grief and anger that crystallize into vows of retaliation. It frames the ethical tension of kṣatriya warfare—duty and strategy on one side, and personal loss driving escalating violence on the other.
Sañjaya reports that after heavy losses among allied forces (Cedi, Matsya, and Pāñcāla) and the death of Drupada’s three grandsons, Dṛṣṭadyumna, distressed and enraged at Droṇa’s actions, makes a vow publicly among the chariot-fighters, setting up the next events of the battle.