Shloka 14
रणभूमिवर्णनम् — Devāsuropama-yuddha and the ‘River’ Metaphor of the Battlefield
Devanagari script
कथं रणे हत: शल्यो धर्मराजेन संजय
Transliteration
kathaṁ raṇe hataḥ śalyo dharmarājena sañjaya
Translation
ധൃതരാഷ്ട്രൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ സഞ്ജയാ! ധർമ്മരാജൻ യുദ്ധത്തിൽ ശല്യനെ എങ്ങനെ വധിച്ചു? എനിക്ക് യഥാർത്ഥമായി പറയുക।
Word by Word
कथम्how?
कथम्:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootकथम्
रणेin battle
रणे:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootरण
FormMasculine, Locative, Singular
हतःslain
हतः:
TypeAdjective
Rootहन् (हत-)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
शल्यःShalya
शल्यः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootशल्य
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
धर्मराजेनby Dharmaraja (Yudhishthira)
धर्मराजेन:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootधर्मराज
FormMasculine, Instrumental, Singular
संजयO Sanjaya
संजय:
TypeNoun
Rootसंजय
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
Speaker
संजय उवाच
Characters & Entities
S
SañjayaŚ
ŚalyaD
Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira)B
battlefield (raṇa)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry into violence and responsibility: even a ruler famed for righteousness (Dharmarāja) must sometimes act decisively in war. It invites reflection on how dharma operates under the harsh constraints of battle and duty.
Sañjaya introduces a question about the circumstances of Śalya’s death on the battlefield—specifically, how Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) managed to slay him—setting up the ensuing account of the combat and its outcome.