Shloka 34
Gadā-yuddhe Bhīma–Duryodhanayoḥ Tumulaḥ Saṃprahāraḥ
Mace-duel’s intense exchange
हतो द्रोणश्न॒ कर्णश्ष॒ तथा शल्य: प्रतापवान् । वैराग्नेरादिकर्तासौ शकुनि: सौबलो हतः,“ट्रोणाचार्य, कर्ण और प्रतापी शल्य मारे गये तथा इस वैरकी आगको प्रज्वलित करनेमें जिसका सबसे पहला हाथ था, वह सुबलपुत्र शकुनि भी मार डाला गया
hato droṇaś ca karṇaś ca tathā śalyaḥ pratāpavān | vairāgner ādikartā ca śakuniḥ saubalo hataḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Droṇa has been slain, and Karṇa as well; likewise the valiant Śalya. And Śakuni, son of Subala—who was the first to kindle this fire of enmity—has also been killed. The verse underscores the moral arc of the war: the principal champions fall, and the instigator who ignited hatred meets the consequence of his own designs.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical consequence of fueling hatred: those who ignite and sustain enmity (symbolized as a fire) ultimately face its destructive outcome, alongside the inevitable fall of even the mightiest in an unrighteous war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that major Kaurava pillars—Droṇa, Karṇa, and the powerful Śalya—have been killed, and that Śakuni, identified as the prime instigator who first kindled the feud, has also been slain.