तं पाण्डवादित्यशरांशुजालं; कुरुप्रवीरान् युधि निष्टपन्तम् ॥
स द्रोणमेघः शरवर्षवेगैः; प्राच्छादयन् मेघ इवार्करश्मीन् ॥
अथात्यर्थविसृष्टेन द्विषताम् असुभोजिना ॥
आजघ्ने वक्षसि द्रोणो नाराचेन धनंजयम् ॥
स विह्वलितसर्वाङ्गः क्षितिकम्पे यथाचलः ॥
धैर्यम् आलम्ब्य बीभत्सुर् द्रोणं विव्याध पत्रिभिः ॥
taṃ pāṇḍavādityaśarāṃśujālaṃ; kurupravīrān yudhi niṣṭapantam ||
sa droṇameghaḥ śaravarṣavegaiḥ; prācchādayan megha ivārkaraśmīn ||
athātyarthavisṛṣṭena dviṣatām asubhojinā ||
ājaghne vakṣasi droṇo nārācena dhanaṃjayam ||
sa vihvalitasarvāṅgaḥ kṣitikampe yathācalaḥ ||
dhairyam ālambya bībhatsur droṇaṃ vivyādha patribhiḥ ||
That Pandava-sun, a net of ray-arrows, scorching the Kuru heroes in battle — that Drona-cloud, with the onrush of a rain of arrows, veiled him, as a cloud veils the sun's rays. Then with an exceedingly powerfully loosed iron arrow, devouring the lives of foes, Drona struck Dhananjaya in the chest. He, with all his limbs shaken, like a mountain in an earthquake, regaining his composure, Bibhatsu pierced Drona with feathered arrows.
9e5114b2745f · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:45:02 PM UTC
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The image 'pāṇḍava-āditya… droṇa-megha,' Arjuna-sun and Drona-cloud veiling his rays, is a precise picture of a duel between equals: the cloud hides the sun for a time but does not extinguish it. The blow to the chest shakes Arjuna 'kṣitikampe yathā acalaḥ,' like a mountain in an earthquake — but 'dhairyam ālambya,' gathering his composure, he answers. It is telling that even having reeled, the righteous man does not fall. The verse teaches that even the mightiest takes blows yet stands firm through steadfastness: as a mountain in an earthquake only trembles without collapsing, so one firm in spirit, though shaken, regains himself — for his support lies not in invulnerability but in unbreakable steadiness (dhairya).