Shloka 4
कथं च मम पुत्राणां जीवतां तत्र संजय । शैनेयोडभिययौ युद्धे तन्ममाचक्ष्य संजय,संजय! युद्धस्थलमें मेरे पुत्रोंके जीते-जी शिनिनन्दन सात्यकि किस तरह आगे जा सके? संजय! यह सब मुझे बताओ
sañjaya uvāca |
kathaṃ ca mama putrāṇāṃ jīvatāṃ tatra sañjaya |
śaineyo 'bhyayau yuddhe tan mamācakṣva sañjaya ||
Sañjaya said: “How, while my sons were still alive there, did Śaineya advance in that battle? Tell me that in full, Sañjaya.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between expectation and reality in war: even when one side believes its forces remain intact, a determined warrior can still break through. It also reflects the ethical unease of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s viewpoint—clinging to his sons’ survival while confronting the momentum of righteous opponents.
Sañjaya reports the battle to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Here Dhṛtarāṣṭra presses Sañjaya to explain how Sātyaki (called Śaineya) managed to advance on the battlefield despite the Kaurava princes still being alive and presumably resisting.