Shloka 9
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 49: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Lament and Strategic Foreboding after Abhimanyu’s Fall
दौ:शासनिरथं साश्वं गदया समपोथयत् । इसके बाद दस वसातीय रथियोंको मार डाला। केकयोंके सात रथों और दस हाथियोंको मारकर दुःशासनकुमारके घोड़ोंसहित रथको भी गदाके आघातसे चूर-चूर कर डाला ।। ८$ || ततो दौ:शासनि: क्रुद्धो गदामुद्यम्य मारिष
dauḥśāsanirathaṃ sāśvaṃ gadayā samapothayat | tato dauḥśāsaniḥ kruddho gadām udyamya māriṣa ||
Sañjaya said: With a mace he smashed to pieces the chariot of Duḥśāsana’s son, together with its horses. Then Duḥśāsana’s son, enraged, lifted his mace—O dear one—ready to strike back. The scene underscores how wrath (krodha) rapidly escalates violence on the battlefield, eclipsing restraint and discernment that dharma would otherwise demand.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) fuels retaliation and intensifies destruction; in dharmic terms, loss of self-control on the battlefield leads to further adharma-like excess even within the frame of kṣatriya warfare.
A warrior crushes Duḥśāsana’s son’s horse-chariot with a mace; immediately afterward, the son—furious—raises his own mace to counterattack, signaling the next exchange in the duel.