Shloka 72
Chapter 23: Śakuni Reports, Kaurava Advance, and Arjuna’s Penetration of the Host
अन्योन्यं प्रतिसंरब्धा: समासाद्य परस्परम् । अहं पूर्वमहं पूर्वमिति न्यघ्नन् सहस्रश:
anyonyam pratisaṃrabdhāḥ samāsādya parasparam | ahaṃ pūrvam ahaṃ pūrvam iti nyaghnan sahasraśaḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: In gegenseitiger Wut stürmten sie aufeinander zu, standen sich von Angesicht zu Angesicht gegenüber und begannen, Männer zu Tausenden niederzuschlagen, jeder rief: „Ich zuerst—nein, ich zuerst!“ In der Blindheit der Rivalität wurde die Schlacht zu einem Wettstreit um den Vorrang, in dem Zorn und Ego das Morden über jedes Maß hinaustrieben.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how egoistic rivalry—insisting on being “first”—can eclipse discernment and restraint, turning conflict into indiscriminate destruction. It implicitly warns that anger and pride on the battlefield (and in life) accelerate harm and weaken dharmic judgment.
Sañjaya describes the combat intensifying: warriors from both armies collide directly, enraged, and in the rush to outdo one another they kill in vast numbers, shouting that they will strike first.