Shloka 20

स्त्री-विलापः — गान्धार्याः रणभूमिदर्शनं शापवचनं च

Battlefield Lament and Gāndhārī’s Curse

Devanagari script

धृष्टकेतुं महात्मानं चेदिपुड़वमड़ना: | द्रोणेन निहतं शूरं हरन्ति हृतचेतस:,चेदिराज महामना शूरवीर धृष्टकेतुको जो द्रोणाचार्यके हाथसे मारा गया है, उसकी रानियाँ अचेत-सी होकर दाह-संस्कारके लिये ले जा रही हैं

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca |

dhṛṣṭaketuṁ mahātmānaṁ cedipuṅgavam ardanāḥ |

droṇena nihataṁ śūraṁ haranti hṛtacetasaḥ ||

Translation

വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു— ദ്രോണൻ വധിച്ച ആ ശൂരൻ, മഹാത്മാവ്, ചേദികളിൽ അഗ്രഗണ്യനായ ധൃഷ്ടകേതുവിനെ സ്ത്രീകൾ ദുഃഖത്തിൽ ബോധം മങ്ങിയവരായി, അന്ത്യകർമ്മങ്ങൾക്കായി എടുത്തുകൊണ്ടുപോകുന്നു.

Word by Word

धृष्टकेतुम्Dhṛṣṭaketu (as object)

महात्मानम्the great-souled one

चेदिपुत्रवध्वःthe wives of the Cedi prince

द्रोणेनby Droṇa

निहतम्slain

शूरम्the hero

हरन्तिthey carry/are carrying

हृतचेतसःbereft of sense, distraught

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Dhṛṣṭaketu

Droṇa

Cedi (people/kingdom)

Dhṛṣṭaketu's queens/wives

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even when war is framed by kṣatriya-dharma, its aftermath is measured in grief and shattered households. The verse highlights the ethical weight of violence: valor and victory do not erase the suffering of those left to perform the dead’s last rites.

What is happening in the narrative?

After Dhṛṣṭaketu, the Cedi king, has been killed by Droṇa, his queens—overcome and mentally numb with sorrow—carry his body away for the funeral/cremation rites, as narrated by Vaiśampāyana.