अथान्यद् धनुर् आदाय सत्यजिद् वेगवत्तरम् ॥
साश्वं ससूतं विशिखैर् द्रोणं विव्याध सध्वजम् ॥
स तन् न ममृषे द्रोणः पाञ्चाल्येनार्दनं मृधे ॥
ततस् तस्य विनाशाय सत्वरं व्यसृजच् छरान् ॥
हयान् ध्वजं धनुर् मुष्टिम् उभौ च पार्ष्णिसारथी ॥
अवाकिरत् ततो द्रोणः शरवर्षैः सहस्रशः ॥
athānyad dhanur ādāya satyajid vegavattaram ||
sāśvaṃ sasūtaṃ viśikhair droṇaṃ vivyādha sadhvajam ||
sa tan na mamṛṣe droṇaḥ pāñcālyenārdanaṃ mṛdhe ||
tatas tasya vināśāya satvaraṃ vyasṛjac charān ||
hayān dhvajaṃ dhanur muṣṭim ubhau ca pārṣṇisārathī ||
avākirat tato droṇaḥ śaravarṣaiḥ sahasraśaḥ ||
Then Satyajit, seizing another, more powerful bow, wounded Drona with arrows, together with his horses, charioteer, and banner. Drona did not bear that harassment by the Panchala prince in battle; and then, for his destruction, he swiftly unleashed his arrows. Drona then swept away the horses, the banner, the bow, the bow-grip, and both side charioteers with showers of arrows, by the thousands.
546530bd5a78 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:00:04 PM UTC
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Satyajit does not yield even after his comrade's death: he again takes up a bow, again wounds Drona — a persistence that knows no retreat. And Drona no longer holds back: "unable to bear the harassment," he unleashes a deadly rain, methodically sweeping away the horses, the banner, the bow, the grip, the charioteers — dismantling his opponent piece by piece. It is notable that even here the order of a master reveals itself: he strips Satyajit of everything by which he holds his ground in battle, before delivering the final blow. The verse teaches that valor which does not retreat before the unconquerable is worthy even in defeat; but that persistence against a clearly superior force, devoid of prudence, leads to destruction; and that there is a threshold at which courage without calculation becomes self-sacrifice — glorious, but irrevocable.