Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 2
अध्याय ३: कृपस्य दुर्योधनं प्रति नीत्युपदेशः
Kṛpa’s Counsel to Duryodhana
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्ााभारत शल्यपर्वमें धृतराष्ट्रका विलापविषयक दूसरा अध्याय पूरा हुआ,निहते सूतपुत्रे तु पाण्डवेन महात्मना । विद्रुतेषु च सैन्येषु समानीतेषु चासकृत्
nihate sūtaputre tu pāṇḍavena mahātmanā | vidruteṣu ca sainyeṣu samānīteṣu cāsakṛt ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: When the charioteer’s son had been slain by the great-souled Pāṇḍava, and when the armies had fled in disorder yet were repeatedly rallied and brought back together, the war’s moral and emotional pressure intensified—victory and loss unfolding side by side amid the collapse and re-formation of collective resolve.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war tests dharma not only through individual heroism but through the fragile morale of entire armies: even after a decisive death, forces may collapse into fear and yet be repeatedly reconstituted by leadership—showing the oscillation between despair and duty.
After the killing of the ‘sūtaputra’ (understood as Karṇa) by a Pāṇḍava, the troops scatter in panic; nevertheless, they are gathered and reorganized again and again, indicating continuing conflict and the effort to restore battle order.
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