Shloka 18
शल्यवधे कौरवसेनाभङ्गः, भीमस्य गदायुद्धं, दुर्योधनस्य समाह्वानम्
Rout after Śalya’s fall; Bhīma’s mace engagement; Duryodhana’s rally
ततो गान्धारराजस्य पुत्र: शकुनिरब्रवीत्,इति श्रीमहा भारते शल्यपर्वणि संकुलयुद्धे अष्टादशो5ध्याय:
tato gāndhārarājasya putraḥ śakunir abravīt | iti śrīmahābhārate śalyaparvaṇi saṅkulayuddhe aṣṭādaśo 'dhyāyaḥ ||
তখন গন্ধাররাজের পুত্র শকুনি বললেন। এইভাবে শ্রীমহাভারতের শল্যপর্বে সংকুল যুদ্ধবর্ণনায় অষ্টাদশ অধ্যায় সমাপ্ত হল।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
This line functions mainly as a narrative marker and chapter colophon: it highlights how, amid the moral confusion of war (saṅkula-yuddha), decisive speech and counsel—here attributed to Śakuni—can steer events. Ethically, it points to the power of words in conflict: counsel may uphold dharma or deepen adharma depending on intent.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Śakuni, the son of the king of Gāndhāra, begins to speak. The remainder is a formal closing statement indicating that this is the end of the eighteenth chapter of the Śalya Parva, within the account of the tumultuous, entangled fighting.