Shloka 18

Adhyāya 140: Rātriyuddhe Droṇa-prāpti-prayatnaḥ

Night engagement and the attempt to reach Droṇa

Devanagari script

जातरूपपरिष्कारेर्थनुर्भि: सुमहास्वनै: । सुवर्णपुड्खैरिषुभिनाराचैश्व सहस्रश:

Transliteration

jātarūpapariṣkārair dhanurbhiḥ sumahāsvanaiḥ | suvarṇapuḍkhair iṣubhir nārācaiś ca sahasraśaḥ ||

Translation

సంజయుడు పలికెను—బంగారంతో అలంకరింపబడిన, మహా టంకారధ్వని చేసే ధనుస్సులు ఉండెను; బంగారు పుంఖములు గల బాణములు, ఇనుప మునులు గల నారాచములు సహస్రాలుగా ఉండెను।

Word by Word

जातरूपपरिष्कृतैःadorned/embellished with gold

धनुर्भिःwith bows

सुमहास्वनैःwith very loud-sounding (bows)

सुवर्णपुड्खैःwith golden fletchings

इषुभिःwith arrows

नाराचैःwith iron arrows/shafts (nārācas)

चand

सहस्रशःby thousands; in thousands

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

bows (dhanus)

arrows (iṣu)

nārāca missiles

gold (jātarūpa/suvarṇa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the paradox of human excellence: refined skill and wealth (gold-adorned bows and arrows) are being directed toward warfare. It invites reflection on how dharma becomes burdened when power and artistry serve destruction rather than protection.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing the battlefield’s armaments—powerful, loudly twanging bows and vast stores of arrows, including heavy nārācas—emphasizing the scale and intensity of the impending or ongoing combat in the Droṇa Parva.