Shloka 12
Śiva’s Battlefield Manifestation and Vyāsa’s Śatarudrīya Exposition (शिवप्रादुर्भावः शतरुद्रीयव्याख्यानम्)
सुतस्तवाब्रवीद् राजन् सारथिं रथिनां वर: । यत्रैष शब्दस्तत्राश्वांश्वोदयेति पुनः पुन:,राजन! युयुधानके बाणोंसे आहत हुई अपनी सेनामें भगदड़ पड़ी देख और उस रोमांचकारी निशीथकालमें वह महान् कोलाहल सुनकर रथियोंमें श्रेष्ठ आपके पुत्र दुर्योधनने अपने सारथिसे बारंबार कहा--“जहाँ यह कोलाहल हो रहा है, वहाँ मेरे घोड़ोंको हाँक ले चलो”
sañjaya uvāca | sutastavābravīd rājan sārathiṁ rathināṁ varaḥ | yatraiṣa śabdastatrāśvāñ śvodayeti punaḥ punaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: O King, your son—foremost among chariot-warriors—repeatedly addressed his charioteer: “Drive the horses to the place where this tumult is rising.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In the fog of war, a leader’s instinct is tested: Duryodhana chooses to rush toward the epicenter of danger. The verse highlights how urgency and pride can propel action, yet such action may be ethically unmoored when the larger cause is adharma—showing that courage alone is not the same as righteousness.
Sanjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duryodhana, hearing a great tumult—caused as his troops reel under Yuyudhāna’s assault—repeatedly commands his charioteer to drive the horses toward the place where the uproar is occurring, indicating a rapid move to confront or stabilize the situation.