Shloka 20
द्रोणविक्रमदर्शनम् / The Display of Droṇa’s Onslaught and the Debate on Pāṇḍava Regrouping
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्ाभारत द्रोणपर्वके अन्तर्गत संशप्तकवधपर्वमें संकुलयुद्धाविषयक बीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ,तथा संछिद्यमानेषु कार्मुकेषु पुनः पुनः । पाज्चाल्य: परमास्त्रज्ञ: शोणाश्वं समयोधयत् इस प्रकार बारंबार धनुषोंके काटे जानेपर भी उत्तम अस्त्रोंका ज्ञाता पांचालवीर सत्यजित् लाल घोड़ोंवाले द्रोणाचार्यसे युद्ध करता ही रहा
sañjaya uvāca | saṃchidyamāneṣu kārmukeṣu punaḥ punaḥ | pāñcālyaḥ paramāstrajñaḥ śoṇāśvaṃ samayodhayat ||
Sañjaya said: Again and again, even as his bows were being cut to pieces, the Pāñcāla warrior—supremely skilled in the science of weapons—continued to engage Śoṇāśva (Droṇācārya, the rider of the red horse) in battle. The scene underscores steadfast resolve amid the brutal mechanics of war: skill and persistence are tested not only by the enemy’s force, but by repeated loss of one’s means and the refusal to yield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights steadfastness under repeated setbacks: even when one’s instruments and advantages are repeatedly destroyed, disciplined skill (āstrajñatā) and resolve can sustain one’s duty in a harsh moral landscape like war.
Sañjaya reports that the Pāñcāla hero (identified in the Gītā Press note as Satyajit) keeps fighting Droṇa—called Śoṇāśva—despite his bows being cut again and again, indicating an intense, close contest where weapons are repeatedly broken.