Shloka 36

धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection

Devanagari script

तन्त्रीस्वनसुखं रम्यं पुंस्कोकिलसमध्वनिम्‌

Transliteration

tantrīsvanasukhaṃ ramyaṃ puṃskokilasamadhvanim

Translation

Sañjaya said: “(It was) charming and delightful to the ear—sweet like the sound of a lute-string, and resonant like the call of a male cuckoo.”

Word by Word

• तन्त्रीस्वनसुखम्: the pleasure of the sound of the lute/strings
• तन्त्रीस्वनसुखम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: तन्त्रीस्वनसुख
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• रम्यम्: delightful, charming
• रम्यम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रम्य
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• पुंस्कोकिलसमध्वनिम्: a sound equal to (like) that of a male cuckoo
• पुंस्कोकिलसमध्वनिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुंस्कोकिलसमध्वनि
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• तन्त्री (stringed instrument / vīṇā-string)
• पुंस्कोकिल (male cuckoo)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid the harshness of war, the epic’s narration highlights how sensory impressions (here, melodious sound) shape mood and perception; beauty and refinement can appear in unexpected contexts, reminding the listener to observe carefully rather than reduce events to violence alone.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a sound as exceptionally pleasing—likening it to the sweet tone of a stringed instrument and to the melodious call of a male cuckoo—thereby setting an atmosphere and emphasizing the striking quality of what is being heard.