Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.7.19

yadāśaranam ātmānam

aikshata śrānta-vājinam

astram brahma-śiro mene

ātma-trānam dvijātmajah

SYNONYMS

yadā — when; aśaranam — without being alternatively protected; ātmānam — his own self; aikshata — saw; śrānta-vājinam — the horses being tired; astram — weapon; brahma-śirah — the topmost or ultimate (nuclear); mene — applied; ātma-trānam — just to save himself; dvija-ātma-jah — the son of a brāhmana.

TRANSLATION

When the son of the brāhmana [Aśvatthāmā] saw that his horses were tired, he considered that there was no alternative for protection outside of his using the ultimate weapon, the brahmāstra [nuclear weapon].

PURPORT

In the ultimate issue only, when there is no alternative, the nuclear weapon called the brahmāstra is applied. The word dvijātmajah is significant here because Aśvatthāmā, although the son of Dronācārya, was not exactly a qualified brāhmana. The most intelligent man is called a brāhmana, and it is not a hereditary title. Aśvatthāmā was also formerly called the brahma-bandhu, or the friend of a brāhmana. Being a friend of a brāhmana does not mean that one is a brāhmana by qualification. A friend or son of a brāhmana, when fully qualified, can be called a brāhmana and not otherwise. Since Aśvatthāmā's decision is immature, he is purposely called herein the son of a brāhmana.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness