अथ शारद्वतो राजन्नार्तिमार्च्छन् पुन: पुनः । शशंस द्रोणपुत्राय यथा द्रोणो निपातित:,राजन्! उस समय शरद्वानके पुत्र कृपाचार्य बारंबार पीड़ाका अनुभव करते हुए जिस प्रकार द्रोणाचार्य मारे गये थे, वह समाचार उनके पुत्रको सुनाने लगे
atha śāradvato rājann ārtim ārcchan punaḥ punaḥ | śaśaṃsa droṇaputrāya yathā droṇo nipātitaḥ ||
अथ शारद्वतो राजन्नार्तिमार्च्छन् पुनः पुनः। शशंस द्रोणपुत्राय यथा द्रोणो निपातितः॥
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights how the fall of a revered elder in war creates a moral and emotional rupture: grief is not merely personal sorrow but a force that transmits news, shapes decisions, and can intensify cycles of vengeance—raising questions about righteous conduct (dharma) amid battlefield necessity.
Kṛpācārya, overwhelmed with repeated anguish, goes to Aśvatthāman and tells him the manner in which Droṇa has been felled. Sañjaya narrates this to Dhṛtarāṣṭra as part of the unfolding aftermath of Droṇa’s death.