Shloka 226
धृतराष्ट्रस्य मूर्च्छा तथा द्रोणविषयकप्रश्नाः
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Fainting and Questions Concerning Droṇa
के नुतं रौद्रकर्माणं युद्धे प्रत्युद्ययू रथा: । स्वर्गमें देवराज इन्द्रके समान जो इस लोकमें श्रेष्ठ और समस्त धनुर्धरोंमें महान् थे, उन भयंकर कर्म करनेवाले द्रोणाचार्यका सामना करनेके लिये उस रणक्षेत्रमें कौन-कौनसे रथी गये थे?
ke nu taṁ raudrakarmāṇaṁ yuddhe pratyudyayū rathāḥ | svargame devarāja indrasya samānā yo ’smin loke śreṣṭhaḥ sarvadhanuṣmatāṁ mahān sa bhīmakarmā droṇācāryaḥ—taṁ prati raṇakṣetre ke ke rathinaḥ gatāḥ ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra asked: “Who were the chariot-warriors that advanced in battle to confront Droṇācārya—he of fierce deeds, regarded in this world as foremost among all archers, and comparable to Indra, king of the gods, in heaven? On that battlefield, which champions went forth to face him?”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of confronting a master-warrior: courage and kṣatriya duty are tested against the reality that war pits even the greatest teachers and heroes against one another, intensifying the moral tension of the conflict.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, anxious about the course of the war, asks Sañjaya to identify which prominent chariot-fighters went out on the battlefield to oppose Droṇa, portrayed as a fearsome and unsurpassed archer, comparable to Indra in splendor and power.