Shloka 673

Devanagari script

हाहाकार प्रकुर्वाणा: कुरवो<भिप्रदुद्रुवु: । मद्रनरेशका वह छोटा भाई विचित्र कवचसे सुशोभित था, उसके मारे जानेपर समस्त कौरव हाहाकार करते हुए भाग चले

Transliteration

hāhākāraṃ prakurvāṇāḥ kuravo 'bhipradudruvuḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya said: The Kauravas, raising a loud cry of lamentation, fled in panic. With the fall of the Madra king’s younger brother—resplendent in wondrous armor—their morale broke, revealing how the death of a prominent warrior can unravel an army’s resolve amid the ethical chaos of war.

Word by Word

• हाहाकारम्: a loud cry, wailing
• हाहाकारम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: हाहाकार
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• प्रकुर्वाणाः: making, raising (a cry)
• प्रकुर्वाणाः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + कृ
• Form: Present active participle (Parasmaipada), Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• कुरवः: the Kurus (Kauravas)
• कुरवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरु
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• अभिप्रदुद्रुवुः: ran away, fled
• अभिप्रदुद्रुवुः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि + प्र + द्रु
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3rd, Plural, Parasmaipada

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Kauravas (Kuravaḥ)
• Madra king (Madranareśa, implied in the prose gloss)
• Madra king’s younger brother (implied in the prose gloss)
• armor (kavaca, implied in the prose gloss)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the fragility of collective courage in war: when a key warrior falls, grief and fear can overpower duty, causing even a mighty host to collapse into disorder—an implicit reminder that kṣatriya resolve is tested not only by weapons but by shock, loss, and morale.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that the Kaurava forces, crying out in anguish, suddenly flee. The accompanying context indicates this panic follows the killing of the Madra king’s younger brother, who was distinguished by remarkable armor.