Shloka 53
Kṛṣṇa-vīrya-kathana
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s appraisal of Vāsudeva’s deeds
क्षत्रंजय: क्षत्रदेव: क्षत्रवर्मा च मानद: । धृष्टद्युम्नात्मजा वीरा: के तान् द्रोणादवारयन्,क्षत्रंजय, क्षत्रदेव तथा दूसरोंको मान देनेवाले क्षत्रवर्मा--ये धृष्टद्युम्नके तीन वीर पुत्र हैं। उन्हें द्रोणके पास आनेसे किन वीरोंने रोका था?
kṣatraṃjayaḥ kṣatradevaḥ kṣatravarmā ca mānadaḥ | dhṛṣṭadyumnātmajā vīrāḥ ke tān droṇād avārayan |
ਵੈਸ਼ੰਪਾਯਨ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਕ੍ਸ਼ਤ੍ਰੰਜਯ, ਕ੍ਸ਼ਤ੍ਰਦੇਵ ਅਤੇ ਮਾਨ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਕ੍ਸ਼ਤ੍ਰਵਰਮਾ—ਇਹ ਧ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਟਦ੍ਯੁਮਨ ਦੇ ਤਿੰਨ ਵੀਰ ਪੁੱਤਰ ਸਨ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਦ੍ਰੋਣ ਦੇ ਨੇੜੇ ਪਹੁੰਚਣ ਤੋਂ ਕਿਹੜੇ ਯੋਧਿਆਂ ਨੇ ਰੋਕਿਆ?
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in practice: valor is inseparable from disciplined resistance and strategic obstruction in battle. Even heroic lineage and personal honor (mānada) operate within the larger ethical frame of duty-bound warfare, where preventing an opponent from reaching a key commander is a legitimate martial responsibility.
Vaiśampāyana identifies three sons of Dhṛṣṭadyumna—Kṣatraṃjaya, Kṣatradeva, and Kṣatravarmā—and asks which warriors blocked them, stopping them from approaching Droṇa. The line functions as a transition into naming the defenders/obstructors in the ongoing battle episode.