Shloka 2
Bhagadatta’s Advance, the Saṃśaptaka Challenge, and Arjuna’s Counterstrike (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय २६)
किमर्जुनश्वाप्पकरोत् संशप्तकबलं प्रति | संशप्तका वा पार्थस्य किमकुर्वत संजय,धृतराष्ट्रने पूछा--संजय! इस प्रकार जब सैनिक पृथक्-पृथक् युद्धके लिये लौटे और कौरव-योद्धा आगे बढ़कर सामना करनेके लिये उद्यत हुए, उस समय मेरे तथा कुन्तीके वेगशाली पुत्रोंने आपसमें किस प्रकार युद्ध किया? संशप्तकोंकी सेनापर चढ़ाई करके अर्जुनने क्या किया? अथवा संशप्तकोंने अर्जुनका क्या कर लिया?
sañjaya uvāca | kim arjunaś cāpy akarot saṃśaptaka-balaṃ prati | saṃśaptakā vā pārthasya kim akurvata sañjaya ||
Sañjaya said: “What, indeed, did Arjuna do against the force of the Saṃśaptakas? Or what did the Saṃśaptakas do to Pārtha (Arjuna)?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of vowed warfare: the Saṃśaptakas are defined by a pledge to either defeat Arjuna or die, underscoring how intention (saṅkalpa) and duty (kṣatriya-dharma) intensify the moral and strategic stakes of battle.
Sañjaya reports a focused inquiry about a key battlefield episode: how Arjuna responded when confronted by the Saṃśaptaka contingent, and conversely what actions that vowed group undertook against him.