Shloka 2
भीमसेनस्य गदायुद्ध-प्रभावः
The Battlefield Impact of Bhīmasena’s Mace Combat
द्रोणपुत्रेण शल्येन कृपेण च महात्मना । समसज्जत पाज्चाल्यस्त्रिभिरेतैर्महारथै:,संजय कहते हैं--भारत! उस दूसरे दिन जब पूर्वाह्नका अधिक भाग व्यतीत हो गया और बहुसंख्यक रथ, हाथी, घोड़े, पैदल और सवारोंका महान् संहार होने लगा, उस समय पांचालराजकुमार धृष्टद्युम्न अकेला ही द्रोणपुत्र अश्वत्थामा, शल्य तथा महामनस्वी कृपाचार्य--इन तीनों महारथियोंके साथ युद्ध करने लगा
sañjaya uvāca | droṇaputreṇa śalyena kṛpeṇa ca mahātmanā | samasajjata pāñcālyas tribhir etair mahārathaiḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: Wahai Bharata, putera Pāñcāla (Dhṛṣṭadyumna) bertempur rapat dengan tiga maharathi ini—Aśvatthāmā putera Droṇa, Śalya, dan Kṛpa yang berjiwa luhur.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its stark form: steadfastness in one’s martial duty even under overwhelming odds. Ethically, it points to the tension between personal survival and the obligation to stand firm for one’s side and command, a recurring Mahābhārata theme where courage and duty operate within the tragic machinery of war.
Sanjaya reports that Dhṛṣṭadyumna, the Pāñcāla prince and a leading Pāṇḍava commander, takes on three eminent Kaurava-aligned mahārathas—Aśvatthāmā, Śalya, and Kṛpa—engaging them together in battle, signaling an intense and concentrated clash among top warriors.