Shloka 15

Jatugṛha-dāhānantara-vṛttāntaḥ

Aftermath of the Lac House Fire

Devanagari script

आचार्य: कलशाज्जातो द्रोण: शस्त्रभूतां वर: । गौतमस्यान्ववाये च शरस्तम्बाच्च गौतम:,“समस्त शस्त्रधारियोंमें श्रेष्ठ हमारे आचार्य द्रोणका जन्म कलशसे हुआ है। महर्षि गौतमके कुलमें कृपाचार्यकी उत्पत्ति भी सरकंडोंके समूहसे हुई है

Transliteration

ācāryaḥ kalaśāj jāto droṇaḥ śastrabhūtāṁ varaḥ | gautamasyānvavāye ca śarastambāc ca gautamaḥ |

Translation

మన ఆచార్యుడు ద్రోణుడు—శస్త్రవిద్యలో శ్రేష్ఠుడు—కలశమునుండి జన్మించాడు. అలాగే గౌతమ వంశంలో కృప (గౌతముడు) శరముల గుంపునుండి ఉద్భవించాడు.

Word by Word

आचार्यःthe teacher (preceptor)

कलशात्from a pot

जातःborn

द्रोणःDrona

शस्त्रभूताम्among those who are armed (weapon-bearers)

वरःthe best, excellent

गौतमस्यof Gautama

अन्ववायेin the lineage (family succession)

चand

शरस्तम्बात्from a clump of reeds

चand

गौतमःGautama (here: Kripa, of the Gautama lineage)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Droṇa

Gautama (sage/lineage)

Kṛpa (implied as Gautama/Kṛpācārya)

kalaśa (pot)

śarastamba (clump of reeds)

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 that true authority in instruction—especially in powerful disciplines like weapon-science—can be rooted in extraordinary, dharma-linked origins and revered lineages, not merely in conventional birth or social status.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana is describing the remarkable origins of the Kuru preceptors: Droṇa’s birth from a pot and Kṛpa’s emergence from a clump of reeds within the Gautama lineage, establishing their eminence among martial teachers.