Shloka 24

Devanagari script

उवाच प्राञ्जलिभर्भूत्वा द्रोणभीष्मसमं रणे | अयं स काल: सम्प्राप्तो मित्राणां मित्रवत्सल

Transliteration

uvāca prāñjalir bhūtvā droṇabhīṣma-samaṃ raṇe | ayaṃ sa kālaḥ samprāpto mitrāṇāṃ mitra-vatsala ||

Translation

கைகூப்பி அவன் கூறினான்—“போரில் நான் துரோணர், பீஷ்மர் ஆகியோருக்கு இணையாக நிற்பேன். நண்பர்பாசமுடையவரே! இப்போது அதே நேரம் வந்துள்ளது—நண்பர்களுக்கான உறுதியான விசுவாசத்தை வெளிப்படுத்த.”

Word by Word

उवाचsaid/spoke

प्राञ्जलिःwith joined palms (one with folded hands)

भूत्वाhaving become

द्रोणभीष्मसमम्equal to Drona and Bhishma

रणेin battle

अयम्this

सःthat/indeed (he/it)

कालःtime

सम्प्राप्तःhas arrived/has come

मित्राणाम्of friends

मित्रवत्सलःaffectionate to friends; friend-loving

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇa

Bhīṣma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical ideal of steadfast loyalty and timely action: when a decisive moment arrives, one should uphold commitments to allies and meet one’s duty with resolve, while still maintaining respectful conduct (prāñjali).

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a warrior, after saluting with joined palms, declares readiness to match the prowess of Droṇa and Bhīṣma in battle and asserts that the crucial time has come to act for the sake of friends/allies, addressing someone praised as ‘mitra-vatsala’ (devoted to friends).