Shloka 67
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection
सर्वेषामेष वै पन्था: शूराणामनिवर्तिनाम् । क्षत्रियाणां विशेषेण येषां युद्धेन जीविका,'युद्धमें पीठ न दिखानेवाले सभी शूरवीरोंका यही मार्ग है। विशेषतः उन क्षत्रियोंको, जिनकी युद्धसे जीविका चलती है, इस मार्गसे जाना ही पड़ता है
sarveṣām eṣa vai panthāḥ śūrāṇām anivartinām | kṣatriyāṇāṁ viśeṣeṇa yeṣāṁ yuddhena jīvikā ||
Sañjaya said: “This indeed is the path for all valiant men who do not turn back—above all for kṣatriyas, whose livelihood and very station are sustained by warfare. For them, to proceed by this way is unavoidable.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames steadfastness in battle as a normative duty: for unretreating heroes—especially kṣatriyas—warfare is presented as an obligatory life-path tied to social role (svadharma) and livelihood, making withdrawal from combat ethically disallowed within that code.
Sañjaya, narrating the battlefield events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, comments on the warrior code: he explains that for brave, non-retreating fighters—particularly kṣatriyas—pressing forward in battle is the expected course, implicitly justifying the continued ferocity of the conflict.