Shloka 79

Devanagari script

तस्थौ सुविह्वल: संख्ये प्रहारजनितश्रम: । अथ द्रोणस्य समरे तत्कालसदृशं तदा

Transliteration

tasthau suvihvalaḥ saṅkhye prahārajanitaśramaḥ | atha droṇasya samare tatkālasadṛśaṃ tadā

Translation

Санджая сказал: В самой гуще битвы он стоял, совершенно потрясённый, изнурённый усталостью, рождённой чередой ударов. И тогда в том сражении произошло событие, словно сама Смерть явилась в тот миг, — зловещий перелом в борьбе.

Word by Word

तस्थौstood

सुविह्वलःgreatly bewildered/overwhelmed

संख्येin battle

प्रहार-जनित-श्रमःfatigued, produced by blows

अथthen

द्रोणस्यof Droṇa

समरेin the battle

तत्काल-सदृशम्like that very moment / instantaneous

तदाat that time

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇa

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the human limits within warfare: even mighty warriors can become mentally shaken and physically drained. It also frames the battlefield as a realm where sudden, death-like reversals can arise, reminding the listener of impermanence and the grave ethical weight of violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a combatant standing in the battle line, overwhelmed and exhausted from repeated strikes. He then signals that, in Droṇa’s sphere of fighting, something occurred that felt like the onset of death—foreshadowing a grim and decisive development.