Shloka 13

Devanagari script

पौरवो धृष्टकेतुं च शरैराच्छाद्य संयुगे | बहुधा दारयांचक्रे महेष्वासं महारथ:

Transliteration

pauravo dhṛṣṭaketuṁ ca śarair ācchādya saṁyuge | bahudhā dārayāṁcakre maheṣvāsaṁ mahārathaḥ ||

Translation

సంజయుడు పలికెను—యుద్ధరంగమున పౌరవుడు ధృష్టకేతువును బాణవర్షముతో ఆవరించి, ఆ మహాధనుర్ధర మహారథిని మళ్లీ మళ్లీ గాయపరచి చీల్చుచు, నిరంతర బలప్రయోగముతో అతనిని అణచివేయుటకు యత్నించెను।

Word by Word

पौरवःthe Paurava (descendant of Puru)

धृष्टकेतुम्Dhṛṣṭaketu

चand

शरैःwith arrows

आच्छाद्यhaving covered

संयुगेin battle

बहुधाin many ways / repeatedly

दारयाम्tore / pierced

चक्रेdid / made

महेष्वासम्the great bowman

महारथःthe great chariot-warrior

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Paurava (Kuru/Kaurava warrior)

Dhṛṣṭaketu

arrows (śara)

battle (saṁyuga)

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 kṣatriya battlefield ethic of relentless engagement and the reality that prowess and endurance are tested through sustained effort; it underscores how war measures strength through repeated, forceful action rather than a single strike.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a Paurava warrior, in the midst of combat, showers Dhṛṣṭaketu with arrows and repeatedly pierces him, attempting to subdue a renowned archer and great chariot-fighter.