Shloka 36
वासवी-शक्तेः प्रयोगः, घटोत्कच-वधोत्तर-शोकः, व्यासोपदेशश्च
The Vāsavī Spear’s Use, Post-Ghaṭotkaca Grief, and Vyāsa’s Counsel
द्रौपदेयान् महाबाहुः पञ्चभि: पठ्चभि: शरै: । विराट मत्स्यमष्टाभिर्दुपद॑ दशभि: शरै:
sañjaya uvāca |
draupadeyān mahābāhuḥ pañcabhiḥ pañcabhiḥ śaraiḥ |
virāṭa-matsyam aṣṭābhir drupadaṃ daśabhiḥ śaraiḥ ||
सञ्जय उवाच— महाबाहुः स पञ्चभिः पञ्चभिः शरैर्द्रौपदेयान् अविध्यत्; विराटं मत्स्यं चाष्टाभिः शरैः, द्रुपदं च दशभिः शरैः समविध्यत्।
सयजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how warfare turns lineage, status, and personal bonds into mere entries in a tally of strikes. It implicitly invites reflection on the ethical cost of kṣatriya conflict: valor is displayed, yet the human and familial devastation remains unavoidable.
Sañjaya reports a battlefield moment in which a mighty warrior wounds multiple opponents in quick succession—Draupadī’s sons with five arrows each, Virāṭa and Matsya with eight, and Drupada with ten—showing the intensity and skill of the attacker amid the Drona Parva fighting.