Satyajit, Son of Drupada

Satyajit was a son of Drupada, the king of Pāñcāla. He was therefore a brother of Dhṛshṭadyumna, Śikhaṇḍī and Draupadī. He fought on the side of the Pāṇḍavas in the war at Kurukshetra.

He is not the only warrior with this name. Other warriors called Satyajit also appear in the list of rathas (chariot-warriors) that Bhīshma gives in the Rathātiratha-Saṃkhyāna. This Satyajit is the son of Drupada.

A family on the Pāṇḍava side

The royal house of Pāñcāla stood firmly with the Pāṇḍavas.

• Dhṛshṭadyumna, Drupada’s eldest son, served as the supreme commander.
• Śikhaṇḍī was one of the seven principal commanders.
• Draupadī was the common wife of the five Pāṇḍavas.

Satyajit joined his brothers in this cause. In Bhīshma’s Rathātiratha-Saṃkhyāna, in the Udyoga Parva, he is named among the rathas of the Pāñcāla host.

Named among the warriors in svarga

In the Svargārohaṇa Parva, Janamejaya asked the ṛshi (seer) about the final course of the great warriors who had risen to the celestial world. In answer, Satyajit was named among them. The others named with him are Bhīshma, Droṇa, Dhṛshṭaketu, Jayatsena and the rest, whose radiant forms the narrator had described. Satyajit, the son of Drupada, attained the celestial stations along with the other heroes of the Pāñcāla host.

Sources

• Mahābhārata, Udyoga Parva, Rathātiratha-Saṃkhyāna Parva, Chapters 165–172
• Mahābhārata, Svargārohaṇa Parva, Chapter 5