Shloka 40
Irāvān-nidhana-anantaraṃ Ghaṭotkaca-nādaḥ
After Irāvān’s fall: Ghaṭotkaca’s roar and the clash with Duryodhana
चित्रसेनो विकर्णश्न राजन् दुर्मर्षणस्तथा । रथिनो हेमसंनाहा: सौभद्रमभिदुद्रुवु:,राजन्! इसी समय चित्रसेन, विकर्ण तथा दुर्मर्षण--इन तीन रथियोंने सोनेके कवच बाँधकर सुभद्राकुमार अभिमन्युपर धावा किया
sañjaya uvāca |
citraseno vikarṇaś ca rājan durmarṣaṇas tathā |
rathino hemasaṃnāhāḥ saubhadram abhidudruvuḥ ||
Sañjaya said: O King, Citraseṇa, Vikarṇa, and likewise Durmarṣaṇa—these three chariot-warriors, clad in golden armour, charged straight at Saubhadra (Abhimanyu). In the heat of battle, their concerted assault shows how the many turn against the one, testing both martial duty and the ethics of fair combat.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a recurring Mahābhārata tension: battlefield duty and courage are praised, yet the narrative also invites reflection on restraint and fairness when multiple elite warriors converge upon a single opponent. It frames war not only as strategy but as a moral arena where conduct (dharma) is continually tested.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that three prominent Kaurava chariot-warriors—Citraseṇa, Vikarṇa, and Durmarṣaṇa—armoured in gold, rush together to attack Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadrā, intensifying the press of combat around him.