Shloka 32

Droṇa–Dhṛṣṭadyumna-yuddha (द्रोण-धृष्टद्युम्न-युद्धम्) — Tactical duel and allied interventions

Devanagari script

शरं चैव महाघोरं कालदण्डमिवापरम्‌

Transliteration

śaraṃ caiva mahāghoraṃ kāladaṇḍam ivāparam

Translation

และเขาก็ปล่อยศรอันน่าสะพรึงกลัว—ประหนึ่งเป็นคทาแห่งมัจจุราชอีกอันหนึ่ง

Word by Word

शरम्arrow

चand

एवindeed/just

महाघोरम्very terrible

कालदण्डम्the rod of Time (Yama's staff)

इवlike/as

अपरम्another/second

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

śara (arrow)

Kāla (Death/Time)

daṇḍa (rod/staff of punishment)

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 underscores the terrifying inevitability of death and consequence in war: once violence is unleashed, it can resemble the impartial ‘rod of Kāla,’ reminding readers that adharma-driven conflict invites inexorable suffering and karmic retribution.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Sañjaya’s battlefield narration, a warrior (contextually implied from surrounding verses) discharges an exceptionally fearsome arrow, compared to the punitive staff of Death/Time, signaling a lethal turning point in the combat.