Shloka 26
तस्यासीत् सुमहद् युद्ध शिखण्डिप्रमुखैर्गणै: । प्रभद्रकैश्न॒ पाञज्चालैश्लेदिभिश्व॒ सकेकयै:,इससे पहले अश्व॒त्थामाका उन प्रभद्रक, पांचाल, चेदि और केकय आदि गणोंके साथ महान् युद्ध हो रहा था, जिनका प्रधान नेता शिखण्डी था (इसीलिये उसे पिताकी मृत्युका समाचार नहीं ज्ञात हुआ।)
tasyāsīt sumahad yuddhaṁ śikhaṇḍipramukhair gaṇaiḥ | prabhadrakaiś ca pāñcālaiś cedibhiś ca sakekayaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: At that time a very great battle was taking place for him, against the companies led chiefly by Śikhaṇḍin—namely the Prabhadrakas, the Pāñcālas, the Cedis, and the Kekayas. Engrossed in that fierce engagement, he did not come to know earlier of his father’s death.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the intensity and chaos of war can eclipse even the most personal knowledge and duties; in the battlefield’s moral fog, attention is consumed by immediate survival and strategy, delaying awareness of consequential events.
Sañjaya reports that a massive fight was underway involving forces led by Śikhaṇḍin—Prabhadrakas, Pāñcālas, Cedis, and Kekayas—so the concerned warrior remained occupied in combat and did not learn earlier of his father’s death.