Shloka 17

Devanagari script

ततः स पार्षत: क्रूरो व्यूहं चक्रे सुदारुणम्‌ । शृज्भाटकं महाराज परव्यूहविनाशनम्‌

Transliteration

tataḥ sa pārṣataḥ krūro vyūhaṃ cakre sudāruṇam | śṛṅgāṭakaṃ mahārāja paravyūha-vināśanam ||

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: Kemudian Dhṛṣṭadyumna, putera Pṛṣata yang garang, menyusun—wahai Raja—suatu susunan perang yang amat dahsyat: formasi “Śṛṅgāṭaka” (berbentuk baji/segitiga), yang ditujukan untuk memecahkan formasi musuh.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात् अव्यय)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पार्षतः: the son of Pṛṣata (Dhr̥ṣṭadyumna)
• पार्षतः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पार्षत (धृष्टद्युम्नस्य पितृ-नाम-आधारितः प्रातिपदिकः)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• क्रूरः: cruel, fierce
• क्रूरः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रूर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• व्यूहम्: battle-array, formation
• व्यूहम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यूह
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• चक्रे: made, formed
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (करणे)
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• सुदारुणम्: very dreadful
• सुदारुणम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु-दारुण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• शृङ्गाटकम्: the ‘Śṛṅgāṭaka’ (triangular) formation
• शृङ्गाटकम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शृङ्गाटक
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा-राज
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• परव्यूहविनाशनम्: destroyer of the enemy’s formation
• परव्यूहविनाशनम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर-व्यूह-विनाशन
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛṣṭadyumna (Pārṣata)
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (Mahārāja)
• Śṛṅgāṭaka-vyūha (battle formation)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even within a dharma-framed war, victory is pursued through disciplined organization and strategy. The verse underscores that warfare is not only about personal valor but also about collective order (vyūha) and the ethical weight of intentionally designing means to break the enemy’s structure.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Dhṛṣṭadyumna, described as fierce, forms a formidable ‘Śṛṅgāṭaka’ battle-array intended specifically to destroy the opposing army’s formation.