Shloka 21

Sauptika-parva Adhyāya 13 — Bhīmasena’s Pursuit of Drauṇi and the Release of a Divine Astra

Devanagari script

इत्युक्त्वा राजशार्टूल द्रोणपुत्र: प्रतापवान्‌

Transliteration

ity uktvā rājaśārṭūla droṇaputraḥ pratāpavān

Translation

毗湿摩耶那说道：说罢此言，那位威猛的德罗那之子——勇力卓绝——便继续前行，并称国王为“诸王之虎”。此句为叙事的转折：在宣示其意之后，阿湿婆他摩由言辞转入行动，预示着随之而来的沉重伦理后果，正是《睡杀篇》之祸端。

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति

• उक्त्वा: having said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), active (parasmaipada sense), prior action

• राजशार्दूल: O tiger among kings
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजशार्दूल
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

• द्रोणपुत्रः: the son of Droṇa (Aśvatthāman)
• द्रोणपुत्रः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रोणपुत्र
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• प्रतापवान्: mighty, valiant
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रतापवत्
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Aśvatthāmā (Droṇaputra)
• Droṇa
• the king addressed as rājaśārṭūla (contextually Dhṛtarāṣṭra/Janamejaya depending on frame)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse itself is a connective narrator’s line, but in context it underscores a moral hinge: once a warrior resolves upon a course driven by wrath and vengeance, speech turns into irreversible action—often leading to adharma and suffering.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that after speaking, the powerful son of Droṇa (Aśvatthāmā) proceeds onward; the honorific address ‘rājaśārṭūla’ signals a formal epic style and transitions into the next action in the Sauptika episode.