Shloka 32

Devanagari script

तस्य पारावतानश्चान्‌ रथशक्‍्त्या पराभिनत्‌ | सवनिकैकशो द्रोणो रक्तानश्वान्‌ विवर्जयन्‌,द्रोणाचार्यने लाल घोड़ोंको बचाते हुए रथशक्तिका प्रहार करके बारी-बारीसे कबूतरके समान रंगवाले सभी घोड़ोंको मार डाला

Transliteration

tasya pārāvatān aśvān rathaśaktyā parābhinat | savanikaikaśo droṇo raktān aśvān vivarjayan ||

Translation

ద్రోణుడు ఎర్ర అశ్వములను విడిచిపెట్టి రథశక్తిని విసిరెను; ఒక్కొక్కటిగా పావురవర్ణముగల అశ్వములన్నిటినీ కూల్చివేసెను.

Word by Word

तस्यof him/that (of Drona)

पारावतान्pigeon-colored (horses)

अश्वान्horses

रथशक्त्याwith a chariot-spear (shakti used from a chariot)

पराभिनत्he struck down / smote

सवनिकsuccessively / in turn

एकशःone by one

द्रोणःDrona

रक्तान्red (horses)

अश्वान्horses

विवर्जयन्sparing / avoiding / leaving out

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Droṇa

chariot (ratha)

spear/lance (śakti)

horses (aśvāḥ)

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?

Even in war, actions can reflect intention and discrimination: Drona’s choice to spare certain horses while destroying others highlights that agency and selectivity persist amid violence, raising ethical questions about necessity, proportionality, and purpose in kṣatriya conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Droṇa, using a spear from his chariot, kills the dove-coloured horses one by one, while deliberately sparing the red horses—an episode emphasizing battlefield dominance and tactical targeting.