Shloka 383
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 155 — Ghaṭotkaca-nidhana-śoka and Karṇa-śakti-vyaya
Kṛṣṇa’s strategic reassurance
निषसाद रथोपस्थे भृशं सम्मूढचेतन: । कानोंतक खींचकर चलाये हुए उस बाणसे घायल हो कुरुवंशी दुर्योधन अत्यन्त मूर्च्छित हो गया और रथके पिछले भागमें धम्मसे बैठ गया
niṣasāda rathopasthe bhṛśaṃ sammūḍhacetanāḥ |
Sañjaya sprach: Vom Pfeil getroffen und im Geist schwer verwirrt, sank Duryodhana—Spross des Kuru-Geschlechts—in eine tiefe Ohnmacht und stürzte schwer auf den hinteren Teil seines Wagens. Die Szene macht deutlich, wie im Krieg selbst der Entschluss eines stolzen Herrschers in einem Augenblick zerbrechen kann, und legt die Zerbrechlichkeit der Macht sowie den schweren menschlichen Preis eines von Adharma getriebenen Konflikts offen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the impermanence of martial pride and political power: in a moment, injury and shock can reduce a mighty king to helplessness. Ethically, it points to the heavy cost of a war pursued through adharma—where ambition and hostility culminate in suffering and loss of agency.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, struck by an arrow and mentally overwhelmed, loses consciousness and collapses onto the rear portion of his chariot, indicating a sudden turning point in the immediate combat situation.