Shloka 176
यूयं तै््ियमाणाश्च मोक्षिता दृढ्थन्वना । “घोषयात्राके समय जब चित्रसेन आदि गन्धर्व तुम्हें हदकर लिये जा रहे थे, उस समय सुदृढ़ धनुष धारण करनेवाले अर्जुनने ही उन सबको परास्त किया और तुम्हें बन्धनसे छुड़ाया
yūyaṁ tair hriyamāṇāś ca mokṣitā dṛḍha-dhanvanā | ghoṣayātrā-kāle yadā citrasenādi-gandharvair hṛtvā nīyamānā āsīta tadā sudṛḍha-dhanuṣā arjunenaiva te sarve parājitāḥ yūyaṁ ca bandhanān mocitāḥ |
Sanjaya said: When, during the Ghoṣayātrā expedition, you were being carried off by Chitrasena and the other Gandharvas, it was Arjuna—steady and unyielding with his bow—who defeated them all and released you from captivity. The statement recalls a past rescue to underscore a moral contrast: those who were once saved by Arjuna now stand opposed to him, revealing the ethical weight of gratitude, loyalty, and the consequences of ignoring rightful conduct.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical force of gratitude and moral consistency: remembering who protected you in crisis should restrain arrogance and hostility, and ignoring such obligations deepens adharma and its consequences.
Sanjaya reminds Dhritarashtra’s side of an earlier event during the Ghoṣayātrā, when the Gandharvas led by Chitrasena captured them; Arjuna fought them, defeated them, and freed the captives—an ironic contrast to the present war where they oppose him.