Shloka 6
Book 10, Adhyāya 12: Aśvatthāmā’s Request for the Cakra and the Brahmaśiras Context
त॑ पुत्रो5प्पेक एवैनमन्वयाचदमर्षण: । ततः प्रोवाच पुत्राय नातिदहृष्टमना इव,“अश्वत्थामा इसे सहन न कर सका। वह उनका एकलौता पुत्र था; अतः उसने भी अपने पितासे उसी अस्त्रके लिये प्रार्थना की। तब आचार्यने अपने पुत्रको उस अस्त्रका उपदेश कर दिया; किंतु इससे उनका मन अधिक प्रसन्न नहीं था
tataḥ putro ’py eka evainam anvayācad amarṣaṇaḥ | tataḥ provāca putrāya nātidahṛṣṭamanā iva ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Then his only son too, unable to bear it, begged him for that very weapon. Thereupon the teacher instructed his son in that missile; yet his heart seemed not greatly pleased—hinting at the moral weight and peril of passing on such destructive power, even to one’s own child.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical burden of transmitting destructive knowledge: even when a request is legitimate (from one’s own son), a responsible teacher may feel inner reluctance, aware that power without restraint can lead to adharma and catastrophe.
Aśvatthāmā, described as the teacher’s only son, cannot tolerate the situation and asks his father for the same powerful weapon. Droṇa instructs him in it, but appears not truly pleased, foreshadowing the dangerous consequences of such weapon-knowledge in the unfolding war.