Shloka 49

Devanagari script

त॑ मोचय महाबाहो पार्षतं शत्रुकर्शन । द्रौणेरास्यमनुप्राप्तं मृत्योरास्यगतं यथा,“महाबाहो! शत्रुसूदन! जैसे कोई मौतके मुखमें पड़ गया हो, उसी प्रकार अश्वत्थामाके मुखमें पहुँचे हुए धृष्टद्युम्मको छुड़ाओ'

Transliteration

taṁ mocaya mahābāho pārṣataṁ śatrukarśana | drauṇer āsyam anuprāptaṁ mṛtyor āsyagataṁ yathā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O mighty-armed one, O crusher of foes, rescue that son of Pṛṣata (Dhṛṣṭadyumna), who has fallen into the very mouth of Droṇa’s son (Aśvatthāmā)—as though he had entered the jaws of Death itself.” The appeal underscores the grim moral pressure of battlefield duty: to save an ally from imminent slaughter even when the opponent is a formidable, wrath-driven warrior.

Word by Word

तम्him

मोचयrelease (you)

महाबाहोO mighty-armed one

पार्षतम्the son of Pṛṣata (Dhṛṣṭadyumna)

शत्रुकर्शनO enemy-crusher

द्रौणेःof Droṇa's son (Aśvatthāman)

आस्यम्mouth

अनुप्राप्तम्having reached / come into

मृत्योःof death

आस्यगतम्gone into the mouth

यथाas / just as

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛṣṭadyumna

Aśvatthāmā

Droṇa

Mṛtyu (Death)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the warrior’s dharma under extreme peril: when an ally is on the brink of destruction, one must act decisively to protect him. The ‘mouth of Death’ simile frames the moment as morally urgent and existential, emphasizing courage and responsibility amid the chaos of war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a battlefield crisis: Dhṛṣṭadyumna has come within Aśvatthāmā’s deadly reach. Addressing a mighty warrior (contextually a leading Pāṇḍava champion), Sañjaya urges immediate intervention to pull Dhṛṣṭadyumna away from near-certain death.