Shloka 2
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 47 — Abhimanyu’s rapid exchanges, counsel to disable his chariot-system
आजानेयै: सुबलिभिरययन्तमश्रैस्त्रिहायनै: । प्लवमानमिवाकाशे के शूरा: समवारयन्
ājāneyaiḥ subalibhir ayayantam aśraiḥ trihāyanaiḥ | plavamānam ivākāśe ke śūrāḥ samavārayan |
Sañjaya said: “Which heroes checked him as he advanced—drawn by powerful, well-bred horses, three years old—so that he seemed to be gliding through the sky?” The line heightens the epic’s war-imagery: martial excellence and speed are admired, yet the question also frames the ethical tension of battle—valor is measured not only by striking, but by the capacity to restrain a formidable foe.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse spotlights a key kṣatriya measure of excellence: not only the ability to surge forward with speed and power, but also the opposing heroes’ capacity to restrain and contain that force. In epic ethics, valor includes disciplined resistance, not merely aggression.
Sañjaya describes a warrior advancing in a chariot drawn by powerful, high-bred, three-year-old horses, moving so swiftly it appears to float in the sky. He then asks which heroes managed to stop or check this onrushing fighter.