Mahabharata 7.127.39 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 127, Shloka 39

दुर्योधन-कर्ण-संवादः

Duryodhana–Karna Dialogue on Vyūha-bheda and Daiva

Devanagari script

पतद्ं हि ग्रसेच्चाषो यथा क्षुद्रं बुभुक्षित: । तथा द्रोणो5ग्रसच्छूरो धृष्टकेतुं महाहवे

Transliteration

patadāṃ hi grasec chāṣo yathā kṣudraṃ bubhukṣitaḥ | tathā droṇo 'grasac chūro dhṛṣṭaketuṃ mahāhave ||

Translation

ਜਿਵੇਂ ਭੁੱਖਾ ਨੀਲਕੰਠ ਪੰਛੀ ਛੋਟਾ ਕੀੜਾ ਨਿਗਲ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ, ਤਿਵੇਂ ਮਹਾਂਯੁੱਧ ਵਿੱਚ ਸ਼ੂਰ ਦ੍ਰੋਣ ਨੇ ਧ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਟਕੇਤੂ ਨੂੰ ਆਪਣੇ ਬਾਣਾਂ ਦਾ ਗ੍ਰਾਸ ਬਣਾ ਲਿਆ।

Word by Word

• पतत्: flying (one)
• पतत्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पत् (धातु) → पतत् (शतृ-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• हि: indeed/for
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि

• ग्रसेत्: would swallow/devour
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रस् (धातु)
• Form: Optative (विधिलिङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• आषः: a bird (blue-throated/kingfisher-like; here: नीलकण्ठ)
• आषः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: आष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यथा: as/just as
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा

• क्षुद्रम्: small/tiny
• क्षुद्रम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• बुभुक्षितः: hungry
• बुभुक्षितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बुभुक्षित (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्त/विशेषण)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तथा: so/in the same way
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• द्रोणः: Drona
• द्रोणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रोण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अग्रसत्: swallowed/devoured
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रस् (धातु) उपसर्ग: आङ् (आ-)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• शूरः: the hero/valiant one
• शूरः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शूर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धृष्टकेतुम्: Dhrishtaketu
• धृष्टकेतुम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: धृष्टकेतु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• महाहवे: in the great battle
• महाहवे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाहव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• द्रोण (Droṇa/Droṇācārya)
• धृष्टकेतु (Dhṛṣṭaketu)
• चाष (cāṣa, bird)
• बाण (arrows) (implied by the simile’s martial sense and traditional gloss)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the asymmetry of power in war: when a master-warrior meets a comparatively vulnerable opponent, the outcome can be swift and consuming. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s grim realism—valor and skill operate within kṣatriya-dharma, yet the imagery also invites reflection on how easily life is extinguished in battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Droṇa, fighting in the great engagement, overwhelms Dhṛṣṭaketu. The comparison to a hungry bird swallowing a small insect conveys the speed and inevitability with which Droṇa makes Dhṛṣṭaketu the ‘prey’ of his attack.