Shloka 3
विचेतसो हतोत्साहा: कश्मलाभिहतौजस: । आर्तस्वरेण महता पुत्र ते पर्यवारयन्,उनकी चेतना लुप्त-सी हो गयी थी। मोहवश उनका तेज और बल नष्ट हो चला था। वे हतोत्साह होकर अत्यन्त आर्तस्वरसे विलाप करते हुए आपके पुत्रको घेरकर खड़े हो गये
sañjaya uvāca |
vicetasō hatōtsāhāḥ kaśmalābhihatāujasaḥ |
ārtasvareṇa mahatā putra te paryavārayan ||
Sañjaya said: Bereft of clear awareness and drained of resolve, their strength and vigor shattered by bewilderment, they raised a loud, anguished cry and closed ranks around your son.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how kaśmala—bewilderment and moral-mental collapse—can destroy ojas (vigor) and utsāha (resolve). In crisis, when discernment fails, people often default to fear-driven reactions (lamentation and protective clustering) rather than dharma-guided judgment.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the warriors, shaken and dispirited, cry out in anguish and gather tightly around the king’s son, forming a surrounding guard—an image of panic, grief, and urgent protection amid the battle.