Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 43
व्यवहारं गदायुद्धे पार्थिवस्थ च पातनम् | तदाख्याय तत: सर्वे द्रोणपुत्रस्य भारत ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
vyavahāraṃ gadāyuddhe pārthivasya ca pātanam |
tad ākhyāya tataḥ sarve droṇaputrasya bhārata ||
(vārtikā: duḥkhasaṃtaptāḥ śokopahatacetasaḥ |
dhyātvā ca suciraṃ kālaṃ jagmur āgatā yathāgatam ||)
व्यवहारं गदायुद्धे पार्थिवस्य च पातनम्। तदाख्याय ततः सर्वे द्रोणपुत्रस्य भारत॥ वार्तिका दुःखसंतप्ता: शोकोपहतचेतस:। ध्यात्वा च सुचिरं कालं जग्मुराता यथागतम्॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral weight of wartime conduct: how a duel is carried out and how a fallen opponent is treated become ethically charged facts that generate grief, reflection, and consequences beyond the battlefield.
Messengers arrive and report to Aśvatthāman the full account of the mace-duel and the king’s downfall. After delivering the news, they linger in sorrowful contemplation and then depart.