Mahabharata — Bhishma Parva, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

ततो द्रोणाय निहतं भीष्ममाचष्ट कौरव: । द्रोणस्तत्राप्रियं श्रुत्वा मुमोह भरतर्षभ

Transliteration

tato droṇāya nihataṃ bhīṣmam ācāṣṭa kauravaḥ | droṇas tatrāpriyaṃ śrutvā mumoha bharatarṣabha ||

Translation

三阇耶说道：随后，一名俱卢人向德罗那禀告：毗湿摩已被杀。德罗那在战场上听到这不祥之讯，悲恸难当，竟昏厥过去——祖父之陨落，乃法（dharma）与武道秩序之柱，即便在这由非法（adharma）驱动的战争中，也令人痛彻心骨。

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात्)
• Form: अव्यय

• द्रोणाय: to Drona
• द्रोणाय: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रोण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचन

• निहतम्: slain
• निहतम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नि-हन् (धातु) → निहत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• भीष्मम्: Bhishma
• भीष्मम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीष्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• आचष्ट: told, reported
• आचष्ट: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-चक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• कौरवः: the Kaurava (Duhshasana)
• कौरवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौरव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• द्रोणः: Drona
• द्रोणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रोण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• तत्र: there, then (in that situation)
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय

• अप्रियम्: unpleasant (news)
• अप्रियम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अप्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• श्रुत्वा: having heard
• श्रुत्वा: Karana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: श्रु (धातु) → श्रुत्वा (क्त्वान्त अव्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (पूर्वकाल)

• मुमोह: became deluded / fainted
• मुमोह: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: मुह् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• भरतर्षभ: O bull among the Bharatas
• Type: Noun
• Root: भरत + ऋषभ (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Drona (Dronacharya)
• Bhishma
• Kaurava (unnamed messenger)
• Dhritarashtra (implied by address Bharatarshabha)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in a righteous framework like kṣatriya warfare, attachment to revered elders and the collapse of moral anchors can overwhelm the mind; the verse highlights how the fall of a dharma-embodying figure (Bhīṣma) shakes the very stability of those who fight, revealing the human cost of adharma-driven conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

A Kaurava informs Droṇa that Bhīṣma has been killed; Droṇa, struck by the shock of this unwelcome news, loses composure and faints, while Sañjaya narrates this to Dhṛtarāṣṭra.