Shloka 25
Droṇa-pātana-paripṛcchā (Inquiry into the Fall of Droṇa) | द्रोणपातनपरिपृच्छा
त॑ भीमसेनश्ष धनंजयश्न शिनेश्व नप्ता द्रुपदात्मजश्न । शैब्यात्मज: काशिपति: शिबिश्न दृष्टवा नदन्तो व्यकिरणञ्छरौचै:,यह देख भीमसेन, अर्जुन, सात्यकि, धृष्टद्युम्न, शैब्यकुमार, काशिराज तथा शिबि गर्जना करते हुए उनके ऊपर बाणसमूहोंकी वर्षा करने लगे
tān bhīmasenaś ca dhanañjayaś ca śineś ca naptā drupadātmajaś ca | śaibyātmajaḥ kāśipatiḥ śibiś ca dṛṣṭvā nadanto vyakiran śaraughān ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing them, Bhīmasena and Dhanañjaya (Arjuna), Sātyaki—the grandson of Śini—along with Dhṛṣṭadyumna, the son of Śaibya, the king of Kāśī, and Śibi, roaring aloud, showered dense volleys of arrows upon the foe. In the moral atmosphere of the war, their fierce battle-cry and missile-rain signal resolute commitment to their side’s duty, even as the violence underscores the tragic cost of kṣatriya conflict.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its starkest form: warriors, once committed to a righteous cause as they understand it, act with unwavering resolve. Yet the imagery of roaring and arrow-showers also reminds the reader that even duty-bound war is grim and costly, demanding moral seriousness rather than mere triumphalism.
Sañjaya reports that leading Pāṇḍava-aligned fighters—Bhīma, Arjuna, Sātyaki, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, the son of Śaibya, the king of Kāśī, and Śibi—upon seeing the opposing force, raise battle-cries and unleash concentrated volleys of arrows against them.