Shloka 3
शल्यवधे कौरवसेनाभङ्गः, भीमस्य गदायुद्धं, दुर्योधनस्य समाह्वानम्
Rout after Śalya’s fall; Bhīma’s mace engagement; Duryodhana’s rally
न गन्तव्यं न गन्तव्यमिति मद्रानवारयत् । दुर्योधनेन ते वीरा वार्यमाणा: पुनः पुनः
na gantavyaṃ na gantavyam iti madrān avārayat | duryodhanena te vīrā vāryamāṇāḥ punaḥ punaḥ
Sañjaya said: Weeping, the women of Madra cried, “You must not go—do not go!” and tried to restrain them. Yet those heroes, though checked again and again by Duryodhana, still pressed on—laying bare the strain between urgent martial resolve and the human bonds that plead for restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between martial duty and the claims of human attachment: loved ones plead for restraint, while the momentum of war and allegiance to a leader drives warriors forward. It underscores how, in conflict, compassion and duty collide, and how repeated counsel or restraint may still fail against determined resolve.
Sañjaya reports a scene of attempted prevention: the Madra women (or Madra folk) cry out ‘Do not go!’ and try to stop the warriors from departing. Despite repeated efforts—along with Duryodhana’s repeated attempts to hold them back—those heroes continue in their course, indicating a charged moment before action in the Shalya Parva narrative.