Shloka 21
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection
न चोपदिष्टस्तस्यासीन्मयानीकाद् विनिर्गम: । कच्चिन्न बालो युष्माभि: परानीकं प्रवेशित:,'परंतु मैंने उसे उस व्यूहसे निकलनेका ढंग अभी नहीं बताया था। कहीं ऐसा तो नहीं हुआ कि आपलोगोंने उस बालकको शत्रुके व्यूहमें भेज दिया हो?
na copadiṣṭas tasyāsīn mayānīkād vinirgamaḥ | kaccin na bālo yuṣmābhiḥ parānīkaṃ praveśitaḥ ||
“And I had not instructed him in the method of exiting from that battle-array. Tell me—has that boy been made, by you, to enter the enemy’s formation?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical responsibility in warfare: sending a young warrior into a complex formation without ensuring he knows the means of withdrawal is morally fraught. It underscores how strategic choices can become ethically blameworthy when they exploit youth, incomplete knowledge, or desperation.
Sañjaya, narrating to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, expresses anxious concern: Abhimanyu knew how to enter a formidable battle-array but had not been taught the method of exit. Sañjaya fears that the Pandava side may have sent the boy into the enemy’s formation despite this dangerous limitation—foreshadowing his being trapped.