Shloka 44
नानृती पाण्डवो ज्येष्ठो नाहं वाधार्मिको<र्जुन शिष्यद्रोही हत: पापो युध्यस्व विजयस्तव,अर्जुन! तुम्हारे बड़े भाई पाण्डुनन्दन युधिष्ठिर असत्यवादी नहीं हैं और न मैं ही अधर्मी हूँ। द्रोणाचार्य पापी और शिष्यद्रोही थे, इसलिये मारे गये। अब तुम युद्ध करो; विजय तुम्हारे हाथमें है
dhṛṣṭadyumna uvāca | nānṛtī pāṇḍavo jyeṣṭho nāhaṁ vādhārmiko 'rjuna | śiṣyadrohī hataḥ pāpo yudhyasva vijayas tava ||
Dhṛṣṭadyumna said: “The eldest of the Pāṇḍavas (Yudhiṣṭhira) is not a speaker of falsehood, and I too am not unrighteous, O Arjuna. Droṇa was sinful and a betrayer of his own disciples; therefore he has been slain. Now fight—victory will be yours.”
धष्टहुम्न उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames wartime action within dharma: it defends Yudhiṣṭhira’s reputation for truth and asserts the speaker’s own righteousness, while morally condemning Droṇa as a violator of the teacher–disciple bond. It shows how characters attempt to reconcile harsh battlefield outcomes with ethical reasoning and duty.
After Droṇa’s fall, Dhṛṣṭadyumna addresses Arjuna to remove hesitation and moral doubt. He insists that Yudhiṣṭhira did not become a liar and that Droṇa’s death is justified by Droṇa’s alleged betrayal of disciples; he then urges Arjuna to resume fighting with confidence of victory.