Shloka 39
भीमसेनस्य गदायुद्ध-प्रभावः
The Battlefield Impact of Bhīmasena’s Mace Combat
न निवर्तयितुं चापि शक््येयं महती चमू: । अन्योन्यप्रेक्षया पश्य द्रवतीयं वरूथिनी,“यह विशाल सेना इस समय पीछे नहीं लौटायी जा सकती। देखिये, सारे सैनिक एक- दूसरेकी देखा-देखी भागे जा रहे हैं
sañjaya uvāca | na nivartayituṃ cāpi śakye'yaṃ mahatī camūḥ | anyonya-prekṣayā paśya dravatīyaṃ varūthinī |
Sañjaya said: “This vast host cannot now be made to turn back. Look—each man, seeing another flee, is himself running; the whole battle-array is breaking and streaming away.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how quickly morale collapses when fear becomes contagious: people imitate what they see. In ethical terms, it warns that without inner steadiness and disciplined leadership, even a powerful force becomes ungovernable and loses its capacity to act rightly and effectively.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that the large army cannot be made to retreat in an orderly way; instead, soldiers are fleeing because they see others fleeing—an uncontrolled rout of the battle formation.