Shloka 30
जातमात्रेण वीरेण येनोच्चै:श्रवसा यथा,अश्वत्थामेति सोअ्द्यैष शूरो नदति पाण्डव | पाण्डुनन्दन! जिस वीरने जन्म लेते ही उच्चै:श्रवा अश्वके समान हिनहिनाकर पृथ्वी तथा तीनों लोकोंको कम्पित कर दिया था और उस शब्दको सुनकर किसी अदृश्य प्राणीने उस समय उसका नाम “अश्व॒त्थामा” रख दिया था, यह वही शूरवीर अश्व॒त्थामा सिंहनाद कर रहा है
arjuna uvāca | jātamātreṇa vīreṇa yenoccaiḥśravasā yathā, aśvatthāmeti so 'dya eṣa śūro nadati pāṇḍava |
Arjuna said: “O son of Pāṇḍu, this very hero—who, at the moment of his birth, neighed like the celestial horse Uccaiḥśravas and shook the earth and the three worlds—was then given the name ‘Aśvatthāmā’ by an unseen being upon hearing that sound. That same Aśvatthāmā is now roaring his battle-cry.”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how extraordinary power and reputation can be signaled from birth, yet such prowess is ethically neutral: it can serve dharma or intensify destruction. In the war context, Arjuna’s recognition of Aśvatthāmā’s ominous, world-shaking cry underscores the moral weight of how a warrior’s strength is directed.
Arjuna identifies the roaring warrior as Aśvatthāmā and recalls the legend of his naming: at birth he neighed like Uccaiḥśravas, shaking earth and the three worlds, and an unseen being named him accordingly. The recollection frames Aśvatthāmā’s present battle-cry as a formidable and portentous presence on the battlefield.