Shloka 13

Devanagari script

पौरवो धृष्टकेतुं च शरैराच्छाद्य संयुगे | बहुधा दारयांचक्रे महेष्वासं महारथ:

Transliteration

pauravo dhṛṣṭaketuṁ ca śarair ācchādya saṁyuge | bahudhā dārayāṁcakre maheṣvāsaṁ mahārathaḥ ||

Translation

سنجے نے کہا—میدانِ جنگ کے گھمسان میں پوروَ نے دھृष्टکیتو کو تیروں کی بوچھاڑ سے ڈھانپ دیا اور اس عظیم کماندار مہارتھی کو بار بار زخمی کر کے چیرتا چلا گیا، بےامان جنگی قوت سے اسے مغلوب کرنے کی کوشش میں۔

Word by Word

पौरवःthe Paurava (descendant of Puru)

धृष्टकेतुम्Dhṛṣṭaketu

चand

शरैःwith arrows

आच्छाद्यhaving covered

संयुगेin battle

बहुधाin many ways / repeatedly

दारयाम्tore / pierced

चक्रेdid / made

महेष्वासम्the great bowman

महारथःthe great chariot-warrior

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Paurava (Kuru/Kaurava warrior)

Dhṛṣṭaketu

arrows (śara)

battle (saṁyuga)

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 highlights the kṣatriya battlefield ethic of relentless engagement and the reality that prowess and endurance are tested through sustained effort; it underscores how war measures strength through repeated, forceful action rather than a single strike.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a Paurava warrior, in the midst of combat, showers Dhṛṣṭaketu with arrows and repeatedly pierces him, attempting to subdue a renowned archer and great chariot-fighter.