Shloka 44
अन्तकप्रतिमश्नोग्रो रात्रियुद्धेडदहत् प्रजा: । 'तत्पश्चात् उग्रमूर्ति महारथी द्रोणाचार्य पाँच दिनोंतक अभेद्यव्यूहका निर्माण, शत्रुसेनाका विध्वंस, महारथियोंका विनाश तथा समरांगणमें जयद्रथकी रक्षा करनेके अनन्तर रात्रियुद्धमें यमराजके समान प्रजाको दग्ध करने लगे ।।
antaka-pratimaśnugro rātri-yuddhe dadāha prajāḥ | tat-paścāt ugra-mūrtiḥ mahā-rathī droṇācāryaḥ pañca-dināni abhēdya-vyūhasya nirmāṇaṃ śatru-senāyā vidhvaṃsaṃ mahā-rathīnām vināśaṃ tathā samara-aṅgaṇe jayadrathasya rakṣaṇaṃ kṛtvā anantaram rātri-yuddhe yama-rāja-samaḥ prajāṃ dagdhum ārabdhavān || dagdhvā yodhān śarair avīro bhāradvājaḥ pratāpavān |
Sañjaya disse: «Na batalha noturna, aquele guerreiro feroz — semelhante em forma a Antaka (a Morte) — incendiou a hoste. Depois, Droṇācārya, o grande guerreiro de carro de aspecto terrível, tendo por cinco dias construído uma formação impenetrável, despedaçado o exército inimigo, destruído grandes campeões e protegido Jayadratha no campo, passou então, no combate da noite, a abrasar a multidão como Yama, senhor da morte. Tendo queimado os lutadores com suas flechas, o valente e poderoso filho de Bharadvāja…»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring ethical tension: even renowned teachers and great warriors, once immersed in total war, can become instruments of mass destruction—likened to Death itself. It invites reflection on how strategy, duty, and vengeance can eclipse compassion, and how war dehumanizes the ‘multitude’ into something that can be ‘burned’ or ‘scorched’.
Sanjaya describes the ferocity of the fighting, emphasizing a night-battle in which a great warrior ‘burns’ the host like Death. The passage recalls Droṇa’s prior feats—creating an unbreakable formation for five days, crushing the enemy, slaying great champions, and protecting Jayadratha—before stating that he continues to devastate warriors with volleys of arrows.