Shloka 41
वध्यमाने ततः सैन्ये भयं सुमहदाविशत् । संशप्तकगणानां च गोपालानां च भारत,समरांगणमें शस्त्रोंद्वारा सैकड़ों और हजारों घोड़े तथा रथ मारे जाने लगे। भारत! इस प्रकार जब सेनाका संहार होने लगा, तब संशप्तकगणों और नारायणी सेनाके ग्वालोंको बड़ा भय हुआ
vadhyamāne tataḥ sainye bhayaṁ sumahad āviśat | saṁśaptakagaṇānāṁ ca gopālānāṁ ca bhārata ||
Sañjaya said: As the army was being cut down, a very great fear seized them. O Bhārata, terror arose among the Saṃśaptaka bands as well as among the cowherd-troops of the Nārāyaṇī army, seeing the slaughter on the battlefield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and psychological cost of war: when destruction intensifies, even renowned or vowed fighters become overwhelmed by fear, showing how violence destabilizes resolve and order.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that as the fighting grows deadly and the army is being destroyed, panic spreads—specifically among the Saṁśaptaka bands and the gopāla contingent associated with the Nārāyaṇī forces.