Mahabharata 7.32.263 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 32, Shloka 263

Cakravyūha-saṃkalpaḥ, Saṃśaptaka-āhvānaṃ, Saubhadra-vikrīḍitam

Drona Parva, Adhyāya 32

Devanagari script

अतीतेषुपथे काले जहार गदया शिर: । किसी वीरने अपने चक्रके द्वारा शत्रुपक्षीय वीरके चक्रका निवारण करके युद्धमें बाणप्रहारके योग्य अवसर न होनेके कारण गदासे ही उसका सिर उड़ा दिया

Transliteration

atīteṣu-pathe kāle jahāra gadayā śiraḥ |

Translation

Disse Sañjaya: Quando o momento de golpear com flechas já havia passado e a abertura no combate se perdera, ele decepou a cabeça do guerreiro com a sua maça (mace)—mostrando como, na pressão da batalha, o lutador muda de meio conforme a circunstância, ainda que o ato seja sombrio e definitivo.

Word by Word

• अतीतेषु: when (they were) past/elapsed
• अतीतेषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अतीत
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Plural

• पथे: on the path/way
• पथे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पथ
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• काले: at the time
• काले: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• जहार: he took away / carried off
• जहार: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: हृ
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3rd, Singular

• गदया: with a mace
• गदया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गदा
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• शिरः: the head
• शिरः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिरस्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• gadā (mace)
• śiraḥ (head)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights battlefield pragmatism under kāla (the pressure of time): when one method (arrow-strike) is no longer feasible, a warrior adopts another (mace), reflecting the harsh demands of kṣatriya conduct in war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that, after the opportunity for an arrow-attack had passed, the combatant used a mace to cut off the opponent’s head, indicating a decisive close-quarters finish.