Mahabharata 7.137.36 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 137, Shloka 36

Chapter 137: Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki) Slays Somadatta; Yudhiṣṭhira Redirected from Droṇa

Devanagari script

तान्‌ बाणै: पञ्चविंशत्या साशथ्वान्‌ राजन्‌ नरर्षभान्‌ | ससूतान्‌ भीमधनुषो भीमो निन्‍्ये यमक्षयम्‌

Transliteration

tān bāṇaiḥ pañcaviṃśatyā sāśvathvān rājan nararṣabhān | sasūtān bhīmadhanuṣo bhīmo ninye yamakṣayam, rājan ||

Translation

ข้าแต่พระราชา ภีมะผู้ทรงคันศรอันน่ากลัว ยิงศรยี่สิบห้าดอกใส่เหล่าเจ้าชายผู้กล้าดุจโคอุสภะนั้น และส่งพวกเขา—พร้อมสารถีและม้า—ไปสู่แดนยมอันไม่เสื่อมสูญ

Word by Word

• तान्: those (men)
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• बाणैः: with arrows
• बाणैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाण
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• पञ्चविंशत्या: with twenty-five
• पञ्चविंशत्या: Karana
• Type: Numeral
• Root: पञ्चविंशति
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• साश्वान्: together with horses
• साश्वान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: साश्व
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• नरर्षभान्: bulls among men, best of men
• नरर्षभान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरर्षभ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• ससूतान्: together with charioteers
• ससूतान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ससूत
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• भीमधनुषः: having a terrible bow
• भीमधनुषः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भीमधनुस्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• भीमः: Bhima
• भीमः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• निन्ये: led, sent
• Type: Verb
• Root: नी
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• यमक्षयम्: to Yama's abode (death)
• यमक्षयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमक्षय
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Bhīma (Bhīmasena)
• Yama
• princes/royal youths (rājakumāra implied by context)
• arrows (bāṇa)
• bow (dhanuṣ)
• charioteers (sūta)
• horses (aśva)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the harsh ethical reality of battlefield dharma: a warrior’s duty is executed through lethal skill, and the narrative frames death as entry into Yama’s realm—emphasizing the irrevocable consequences of war even when actions align with kṣatriya conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīma, using a powerful bow, strikes a group of eminent princes with twenty-five arrows and kills them along with their charioteers and horses, sending them to Yama’s abode.