धृष्टद्युम्नरथं त्यक्त्वा भीता: सम्प्राद्रवन् दिश: । तब पाण्डुपुत्र भीमसेन और समस्त पांचाल भयभीत हो धृष्टद्युम्नका रथ छोड़कर चारों दिशाओंमें भाग गये
dhṛṣṭadyumnarathaṃ tyaktvā bhītāḥ samprādravan diśaḥ |
Sañjaya said: Stricken with fear, they abandoned Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s chariot and fled in all directions.
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights the moral-psychological reality that fear can disrupt even a warrior’s commitment to duty; in a dharma-yuddha, steadiness (dhairya) is repeatedly tested, and lapses reveal the human cost of violence and the fragility of resolve under extreme pressure.
Sañjaya reports that the fighters near Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s chariot become frightened, abandon the chariot, and scatter, fleeing in different directions—an image of a sudden rout or panic in that sector of the battlefield.