Mahabharata 7.116.44 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 116, Shloka 44
Śaineya’s Breakthrough and Reunion with Arjuna (शैनेयस्य समागमः)
द्रोणो हि बलवान श्रेष्ठ: कृतास्त्रो युद्धदुर्मद: । पज्चालास्ते महेष्वासं प्रत्यविध्यन् कथं रणे
droṇo hi balavān śreṣṭhaḥ kṛtāstro yuddha-durmadaḥ | pāñcālāste maheṣvāsaṃ pratyavidhyan kathaṃ raṇe ||
സഞ്ജയൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ദ്രോണൻ ബലവാനും ശ്രേഷ്ഠനും, അസ്ത്രവിദ്യയിൽ പൂർണ്ണപരിശീലിതനും, യുദ്ധമദത്തിൽ ഉഗ്രനും ആകുന്നു; അങ്ങനെയുള്ള മഹാധനുർധരനെ പാഞ്ചാലർ റണത്തിൽ എങ്ങനെ പ്രതിഘാതിച്ചു?
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between reputation and reality in war: even a famed, fully trained warrior can be challenged when opponents act with resolve and coordination. Ethically, it invites reflection on how martial prowess and battle-fury (yuddha-durmada) can be met—and sometimes checked—by determined resistance.
Sañjaya describes Droṇa as exceptionally powerful and battle-hardened, then poses a pointed question: despite Droṇa’s superiority, by what means did the Pāñcāla warriors manage to counterstrike and wound/strike him in the thick of battle?
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