Shloka 20
अलंबलवधः (Alaṃbala-vadhaḥ) / The Slaying of Alaṃbala and the Advance toward Karṇa
Devanagari script
शोचयत्येष नियतं भूय: पुत्रवधाद्धि माम्
Transliteration
śocayaty eṣa niyataṃ bhūyaḥ putravadhād dhi mām
Translation
సంజయుడు అన్నాడు—ఈ మనిషి మళ్లీ మళ్లీ నన్ను శోకంలో ముంచుతున్నాడు; నిజంగా, తన కుమారుని వధ కారణంగానే.
Word by Word
शोचयतिcauses (me) to grieve
शोचयति:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootशोचय् (causative of √शुच्)
FormLat (Present), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada
एषःthis (man/one)
एषः:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootएतद् (प्रातिपदिक: एष)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
नियतंconstantly, surely
नियतं:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootनियत (प्रातिपदिक)
FormAdverbial (accusative used adverbially)
भूयःagain, further
भूयः:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootभूयस् (प्रातिपदिक)
FormAdverb
पुत्रवधात्from the killing of (my) son
पुत्रवधात्:
Apadana
TypeNoun
Rootपुत्रवध (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Ablative, Singular
हिindeed, for
हि:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootहि
माम्me
माम्:
Karma
TypePronoun
Rootअस्मद् (प्रातिपदिक: मा)
Form—, Accusative, Singular
Speaker
संजय उवाच
Characters & Entities
S
SañjayaA
a grieving man (unspecified in this half-verse)S
son (unspecified)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
The verse highlights how the violent loss of a child becomes an enduring source of sorrow, showing the human cost of war and the ethical weight carried by survivors and witnesses.
Sañjaya, narrating events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, remarks that a particular person repeatedly causes him grief, specifically due to the death of that person’s son—indicating an ongoing lament or reminder tied to the battlefield loss.