Shloka 71
आचार्यो वृष्णिवीराणां कौरवाणां च यो द्विज: । सर्वक्षत्रस्य चाचार्य: सर्वशस्त्रभूृतां वर: । तेन द्रोणेन ते तात कथमासीत् समागम:
ācāryo vṛṣṇivīrāṇāṃ kauravāṇāṃ ca yo dvijaḥ | sarvakṣatrasya cācāryaḥ sarvaśastrabhṛtāṃ varaḥ | tena droṇena te tāta katham āsīt samāgamaḥ ||
വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു—താതാ! വൃഷ്ണിവീരന്മാരുടെയും കൗരവന്മാരുടെയും ആചാര്യനായ ആ ദ്വിജൻ ദ്രോണൻ, സമസ്ത ക്ഷത്രിയവംശങ്ങളുടെ ഗുരുവും ആയുധധാരികളിൽ അഗ്രഗണ്യനും ആകുന്നു; ആ ദ്രോണാചാര്യനുമായി നിന്റെ സമാഗമം എങ്ങനെ സംഭവിച്ചു?
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical weight of the guru’s role in kṣatriya society: a single preceptor can shape the conduct and capabilities of many royal lineages. By highlighting Droṇa as ‘foremost among weapon-bearers’ and teacher to multiple clans, it frames martial skill as something transmitted through disciplined instruction, carrying responsibility beyond any one faction.
Vaiśampāyana pauses to identify Droṇa with honorific epithets and then asks how the addressed person’s encounter/meeting with Droṇa occurred. The question functions as a narrative bridge, inviting an account of the circumstances that led to contact with this renowned teacher.