Shloka 8
तथैव द्रोणपुत्रस्य तदस्त्र॑ तिग्मतेजस: । प्रजज्वाल महाज्वालं तेजोमण्डलसंवृतम्,इसी प्रकार प्रचण्ड तेजस्वी द्रोणपुत्रका वह अस्त्र भी तेजोमण्डलसे घिरकर बड़ी-बड़ी ज्वालाओंके साथ जलने लगा
tathaiva droṇaputrasya tad astraṃ tigmategasaḥ | prajajvāla mahājvālaṃ tejomaṇḍalasaṃvṛtam ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: In the same manner, the terrible weapon of Droṇa’s son—keen in splendor—blazed forth, wrapped in a circle of radiance, flaring with great tongues of flame. The scene underscores how, in the night of slaughter, martial power escalates beyond human restraint, turning the battlefield into a moral and physical conflagration.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how weapon-power, once unleashed in anger and vengeance, becomes an impersonal force of destruction. It implicitly warns that brilliance and might (tejas) are ethically neutral unless governed by dharma; otherwise they magnify harm.
During the Sauptika episode, Aśvatthāman (Droṇa’s son) deploys or readies a formidable astra. It ignites with immense flames and a surrounding halo of radiance, signaling the terrifying escalation of the night’s violence.