Shloka 45
Śiva’s Battlefield Manifestation and Vyāsa’s Śatarudrīya Exposition (शिवप्रादुर्भावः शतरुद्रीयव्याख्यानम्)
धृष्टद्युम्नो महाराज द्रोणं विद्ध्वा त्रिभि: शरै:
dhṛṣṭadyumno mahārāja droṇaṃ viddhvā tribhiḥ śaraiḥ
सञ्जय उवाच—महाराज, धृष्टद्युम्नः द्रोणं त्रिभिः शरैर्विद्ध्वा ततोऽभ्यवर्तत; युद्धस्य घोरवेगेऽस्मिन् सीमातिक्रान्ते धर्मसंशयेऽपि गुरुरपि रणाङ्गणे योद्धेव परिगृह्यते।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh ethical reality of war: once dharma is reframed as battlefield duty, even a venerable teacher like Droṇa is engaged without hesitation. It points to the tragic erosion of personal reverence under the demands of kṣatriya-dharma and the inexorable logic of conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Dhr̥ṣṭadyumna has hit Droṇa with three arrows, marking a forceful moment in the ongoing combat between the Pāṇḍava commander and the Kaurava preceptor.