Shloka 19
द्रोणानीकाभिमुखगमनम्
Abhimanyu advances toward Droṇa’s host
उपदिष्टो हि मे पित्रा योगोडनीकविशातने । नोत्सहे हि विनिर्गन्तुमहं कस्यांचिदापदि,पिताजीने मुझे चक्रव्यूहको भेदनकी विधि तो बतायी है; परंतु किसी आपत्तिमें पड़ जानेपर मैं उस व्यूहसे बाहर नहीं निकल सकता
upadiṣṭo hi me pitrā yogodānīka-viśātane | notsahe hi vinirgantum ahaṃ kasyāñcid āpadi ||
Sanjaya said: “My father did teach me the method of breaking the Cakravyūha—the formidable, wheel-like battle formation. Yet if I were caught in some crisis within it, I do not have the confidence to find my way back out.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Knowing a technique in part is not the same as mastering it fully: Sanjaya distinguishes between learning how to break into a complex formation and having the skill to safely exit it under pressure, highlighting the ethical and practical danger of incomplete competence in war.
Sanjaya reports that his father instructed him in the method of piercing the Cakravyuha, but he admits he cannot guarantee an escape if trapped inside during a crisis—an admission that echoes the broader wartime stakes of entering formations that are hard to exit.