Mahabharata 7.21.44 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 44

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

Devanagari script

क्रूरां शरीरसंघट्टां सादिनक्रां दुरत्ययाम्‌ । द्रोण: प्रावर्तयत्‌ तत्र नदीमन्तकगामिनीम्‌

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca |

krūrāṃ śarīrasaṃghaṭṭāṃ sādinakrāṃ duratyayām |

droṇaḥ prāvartayat tatra nadīm antakagāminīm ||

Translation

Санджая сказал: Там Дрона привёл в движение жестокую реку битвы — забитую раздавленными телами, кишащую крокодилами и прочими зверями и почти непроходимую, — реку, что несла людей прямо к Антаке (Смерти). Этот образ показывает поле брани не как героическую забаву, а как нравственную катастрофу: война, однажды выпущенная на волю, становится течением, увлекающим обе стороны к гибели, невзирая на доблесть и намерения.

Word by Word

• क्रूराम्: cruel, fierce
• क्रूराम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रूर
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• शरीर-संघट्टाम्: a collision/heap of bodies
• शरीर-संघट्टाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शरीरसंघट्टा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• सादि-नक्राम्: having riders as crocodiles (i.e., with mounted warriors like crocodiles)
• सादि-नक्राम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सादिनक्रा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• दुरत्ययाम्: hard to cross
• दुरत्ययाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुरत्यय
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

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

• प्रावर्तयत्: set in motion, caused to flow
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + वृत् (वर्तयति)
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada, Indicative

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र

• नदीम्: river
• नदीम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• अन्तक-गामिनीम्: leading to Death (Yama), death-going
• अन्तक-गामिनीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्तकगामिनी
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Droṇa
• Antaka (Death/Yama)
• river (metaphorical river of battle)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses a stark metaphor—war as a death-bound river—to underline the ethical gravity of violence: once battle intensifies, it becomes an impersonal force that sweeps away lives on all sides, challenging any easy glorification of warfare.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes Droṇa’s onslaught in the Droṇa Parva: Droṇa’s tactics and ferocity make the battlefield resemble a terrifying river filled with bodies and predators, nearly impossible for warriors to ‘cross’—i.e., to survive or overcome.