Shloka 22

Devanagari script

त॑ विंशतिसहस्राणि पञठ्चालानां नरर्षभा: । तथा चरन्तं संग्रामे सर्वतो5वाकिरज्छरै:,इस प्रकार संग्राममें विचरते हुए द्रोणाचार्यपर बीस हजार नरश्रेष्ठ पांचालवीर सब ओरसे बाणोंकी वर्षा करने लगे

Transliteration

tāni viṁśati-sahasrāṇi pañcālānāṁ naraṛṣabhāḥ | tathā carantaṁ saṅgrāme sarvato ’vākiran śaraiḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: Melihat Droṇa bergerak di tengah pertempuran, dua puluh ribu pahlawan Pañcāla yang gagah laksana lembu jantan menghujaninya dengan panah dari segala arah.

Word by Word

तानिthose (them)

विंशति-सहस्राणिtwenty-thousands (twenty thousand)

पाञ्चालानाम्of the Panchalas

नरर्षभाःbulls among men, best of men

तथाthus, likewise

चरन्तम्moving about, roaming

संग्रामेin battle

सर्वतःfrom all sides

अवाकिरन्they showered, they scattered

शरैःwith arrows

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Pañcālas

Droṇācārya

arrows (śara)

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?

The verse highlights the harsh logic of dharma in war: even a revered teacher like Droṇa becomes a legitimate target when he stands as the chief instrument of destruction. It points to the tension between reverence and duty, and how battlefield roles can override personal bonds.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that twenty thousand elite Pañcāla fighters converge on Droṇa as he ranges across the battlefield, attacking him from every direction with a dense rain of arrows.