Shloka 34

Devanagari script

तमायान्तं महाबाहें प्रत्यगृह्नलात्‌ तवात्मज:

Transliteration

tam āyāntaṁ mahābāho pratyagṛhṇalāt tavātmajaḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O mighty-armed one, as he came forward, your son received him—meeting his advance and taking him in.”

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• आयान्तम्: coming/approaching
• आयान्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (आ + या)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular, Present active participle (शतृ), Parasmaipada

• महाबाहो: O mighty-armed one
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाबाहु
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• प्रत्यगृह्णात्: seized/held back/received
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रह् (प्रति + ग्रह्)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• तव: your
• तव: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: Genitive, Singular

• आत्मजः: son
• आत्मजः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: आत्मज
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• tava ātmajaḥ (Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights alertness and readiness in a charged wartime encounter: when an opponent or ally advances, one must respond decisively. Ethically, it reflects the kṣatriya context where prompt reception—whether to engage, restrain, or welcome—signals responsibility and command.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that as a certain person approached, Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son met him and ‘received’ him—indicating an immediate response to the arrival, likely in the midst of battlefield movements or a tense confrontation.