वैशंपायन उवाच
ततः शिष्यान् समानीय आचार्यार्थम् अचोदयत् ॥
द्रोणः सर्वान् अशेषेण दक्षिणार्थं महीपते ॥
पाञ्चालराजं द्रुपदं गृहीत्वा रणमूर्धनि ॥
पर्यानयत भद्रं वः सा स्यात् परमदक्षिणा ॥
तथेत्य् उक्त्वा तु ते सर्वे रथैस् तूर्णं प्रहारिणः ॥
आचार्यधनदानार्थं द्रोणेन सहिता ययुः ॥
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
tataḥ śiṣyān samānīya ācāryārtham acodayat ||
droṇaḥ sarvān aśeṣeṇa dakṣiṇārthaṃ mahīpate ||
pāñcālarājaṃ drupadaṃ gṛhītvā raṇamūrdhani ||
paryānayata bhadraṃ vaḥ sā syāt paramadakṣiṇā ||
tathety uktvā tu te sarve rathais tūrṇaṃ prahāriṇaḥ ||
ācāryadhanadānārthaṃ droṇena sahitā yayuḥ ||
Vaishampayana said: 'Then, having gathered his pupils, Drona urged all of them, without exception, for the sake of the teacher's fee, O lord of the earth.' Drona said: 'Having seized Drupada, king of the Panchalas, at the forefront of battle, bring him to me; blessings upon you — that shall be the highest fee.' Vaishampayana said: 'Having said "so be it," all those warriors swiftly, on their chariots, set out together with Drona to give the teacher his fee.'
8e15415480a5 · published Jul 12, 2026, 4:53:33 PM UTC
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Here what Drona's heart truly craved comes to light: the guru's fee — the capture of Drupada. It is telling that he turns the teacher's sacred right to payment into an instrument of personal vengeance. A troubling duality appears here: the guru-dakshina is sacred, and it is the pupil's duty to fulfill it; yet the very payment demanded is stained by the teacher's old grievance. Tellingly, Drona asks not for gold or service but for revenge upon the one who wronged him — drawing his innocent pupils into his own private reckoning. Scripture thus shows how an unforgiven wound distorts even what is holy: Drona turns teaching itself, the noblest of services, into a means of settling accounts, and the pupils' duty becomes the execution of his revenge.