Shloka 8
धृतराष्ट्रस्य संजयप्रश्नः
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Inquiry to Saṃjaya on Strategic Comparisons
ये चाप्यन्ये पार्थिवास्तत्र योद्धू समागता: कौरवाणां प्रियार्थम् । मुमूर्षव: पाण्डवाग्नौ प्रदीप्ते समानीता धार्तराष्ट्रेण होतुम्
ye cāpyanye pārthivās tatra yoddhuṃ samāgatāḥ kauravāṇāṃ priyārtham | mumūrṣavaḥ pāṇḍavāgnau pradīpte samānītā dhārtarāṣṭreṇa hotum ||
Sañjaya sprach: „Und auch jene anderen Könige, die sich dort versammelt haben, um zu kämpfen, nur um den Kauravas zu gefallen—Männer, denen der Tod schon nahe ist—sind vom Sohn Dhṛtarāṣṭras herbeigeführt worden, als sollten sie in das lodernde Feuer geopfert werden, das die Pāṇḍavas sind.“ Diese Zeile zeichnet den kommenden Krieg nicht als heldisches Spiel, sondern als düsteres, ethisch aufgeladenes Opfer: Ehrgeiz und Fraktionsloyalität treiben die Herrscher in die Selbstvernichtung.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that unethical political loyalty and the desire to please a faction can become a path to ruin. By casting the Pāṇḍavas as a ‘blazing fire’ and the allied kings as ‘oblations,’ it highlights how adharma-driven leadership (Duryodhana’s) turns war into a destructive sacrifice where many are consumed.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that many other kings have gathered to fight on the Kaurava side. He portrays them as already doomed, summoned by Duryodhana to be ‘offered’ into the powerful, blazing force of the Pāṇḍavas in the impending Kurukṣetra war.