Shloka 12

Devanagari script

भूय एव तु मे शंस यथा युद्धमवर्तत । कुरूणां पाण्डवानां च हैडिम्बे निहते तदा,अब घटोत्कचके मारे जानेपर कौरवों तथा पाण्डवोंमें पुनः: जिस प्रकार युद्ध आरम्भ हुआ, उसीका मुझसे वर्णन करो

Transliteration

bhūya eva tu me śaṃsa yathā yuddham avartata | kurūṇāṃ pāṇḍavānāṃ ca haiḍimbe nihate tadā ||

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Tell me again, in full, how the battle unfolded—how the fighting resumed between the Kurus and the Pāṇḍavas at that time, after the Haiḍimba (Ghaṭotkaca) had been slain.”

Word by Word

भूयःagain, once more

एवindeed, just

तुbut, and

मेto me / for me (of me)

शंसtell, relate

यथाhow, in what manner

युद्धम्battle, war

अवर्ततwent on, took place

कुरूणाम्of the Kurus

पाण्डवानाम्of the Pandavas

चand

हैडिम्बेwhen/at (the time of) Hidimba’s (son) / Haidimba (Ghaṭotkaca)

निहतेhaving been slain

तदाthen, at that time

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Kurus (Kauravas)

Pāṇḍavas

Haiḍimba (Ghaṭotkaca)

yuddha (the battle)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the human need to understand catastrophic events through narration: Dhṛtarāṣṭra, shaken by the fall of a major warrior, seeks a clear account of how actions and consequences unfolded. It underscores how war’s momentum persists even after grievous losses, pointing to the inexorable flow of karma and conflict once dharma has been destabilized.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the slaying of Ghaṭotkaca (called Haiḍimba), Dhṛtarāṣṭra asks for a renewed, detailed report of how the battle proceeded between the Kauravas and the Pāṇḍavas—i.e., how the fighting resumed and what developments followed that turning point.