Shloka 20
Somadatta–Sātyaki Engagement; Bhīma’s Interventions; Droṇa–Yudhiṣṭhira Astra Exchange
Book 7, Chapter 132
सेनां दुरोदरं विद्धि शरानक्षान् विशाम्पते । ग्लहं च सैन्धवं राजंस्तत्र द्यूतस्य निश्चय:,तात! (असली जूआ तो वहाँ हो रहा है) जहाँ तुम्हारे बहुत-से कौरवयोद्धा खड़े हैं। इस सेनाको ही तुम जुआरी समझो। प्रजानाथ! बाणोंको ही पासे मान लो। राजन! सिंधुराज जयद्रथको ही बाजी या दाँव समझो। उसीपर जूएकी हार-जीतका फैसला होगा
senāṁ durōdaraṁ viddhi śarān akṣān viśāṁpate | glahaṁ ca saindhavaṁ rājan tatra dyūtasya niścayaḥ, tāta ||
द्रोण उवाच—सेनां दुरोदरं विद्धि शरान् अक्षान् विशाम्पते। ग्लहं च सैन्धवं राजंस्तत्र द्यूतस्य निश्चयः।
द्रोण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Droṇa frames the battle as a dice-game to highlight moral and practical peril: war is a high-risk contest where outcomes hinge on a single critical ‘stake’ (Jayadratha). The metaphor recalls the destructive power of gambling—suggesting that reckless choices and fixation on a wager can decide ruin or victory.
Droṇa instructs the king/commander to view the ongoing combat as a decisive gamble: the army is the gambler, arrows are the dice, and Jayadratha is the wager. The implication is tactical—Jayadratha’s role is pivotal, and the battle’s immediate outcome will be determined around him.