Mahabharata (Gita Press) 7.21.55 - Drona Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 55

द्रोणविक्रमदर्शनम् / The Display of Droṇa’s Onslaught and the Debate on Pāṇḍava Regrouping

Devanagari script

शिखण्डिनं द्वादशभिवविंशत्या चोत्तमौजसम्‌ । वसुदानं च भल्लेन प्रैषयद्‌ यमसादनम्‌,उन्होंने शिखण्डीको बारह और उत्तमौजाको बीस बाणोंसे घायल करके वसुदानको एक ही भल्लसे मारकर यमलोक भेज दिया

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | śikhaṇḍinaṃ dvādaśabhir viṃśatyā cottamaujasaṃ | vasudānaṃ ca bhallena praiṣayad yamasādanam ||

Translation

ਉਸ ਨੇ ਸ਼ਿਖੰਡੀ ਨੂੰ ਬਾਰਾਂ ਅਤੇ ਉੱਤਮੌਜਾ ਨੂੰ ਵੀਹ ਤੀਰਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਵਿੰਨ੍ਹਿਆ; ਅਤੇ ਇਕੋ ਭੱਲ-ਤੀਰ ਨਾਲ ਵਸੁਦਾਨ ਨੂੰ ਮਾਰ ਕੇ ਯਮ ਦੇ ਧਾਮ ਵੱਲ ਭੇਜ ਦਿੱਤਾ।

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Word by Word

• शिखण्डिनम्: Shikhandin
• शिखण्डिनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिखण्डिन्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• द्वादशभिः: with twelve (arrows)
• द्वादशभिः: Karana
• Type: Numeral
• Root: द्वादश
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• विंशत्या: with twenty (arrows)
• विंशत्या: Karana
• Type: Numeral
• Root: विंशति
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

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

• उत्तमौजसम्: Uttamaujas
• उत्तमौजसम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: उत्तमौजस्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• वसुदानम्: Vasudana
• वसुदानम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुदान
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

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

• भल्लेन: with a bhalla-arrow (a sharp dart-like arrow)
• भल्लेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: भल्ल
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• प्रैषयत्: sent/consigned
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-इष्
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• यमसादनम्: to Yama's abode (the realm of death)
• यमसादनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमसादन
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śikhaṇḍin
• Uttamaujā
• Vasudāna
• Yama
• bhalla (broad-headed arrow)
• Yamasādana (abode of Yama)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical gravity of war: martial excellence can decide life and death in an instant, reminding the listener that actions in battle carry irreversible consequences and that the epic’s dharma-discourse unfolds amid such stark realities.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a battlefield episode where a warrior wounds Śikhaṇḍin with twelve arrows and Uttamaujā with twenty, then kills Vasudāna with a single bhalla arrow, metaphorically ‘sending’ him to Yama’s realm.