Shloka 1
2: छा अकाल एकोनविशो< ध्याय: पाण्डवसैनिकोंका आपसमें बातचीत करते 5 68883 प्रशंसा और धृतराष्ट्रकी निन्दा करना तथा -सेनाका पलायन, भीमद्वारा इक्कीस हजार पैदलोंका संहार और दुर्योधनका अपनी सेनाको उत्साहित करना संजय उवाच पातिते युधि दुर्थर्षे मद्रराजे महारथे । तावकास्तव पुत्राश्च प्रायशो विमुखाभवन्,संजय कहते हैं--राजन्! दुर्जय महारथी मद्रराज शल्यके मारे जानेपर आपके सैनिक और पुत्र प्राय: संग्रामसे विमुख हो गये
sañjaya uvāca | pātite yudhi durdharṣe madrarāje mahārathe | tāvakās tava putrāś ca prāyaśo vimukhābhavan ||
Sañjaya said: O King, when the Madra ruler Śalya—an unconquerable great chariot-warrior—was struck down in battle, your troops and your sons, for the most part, turned away from the fight. The fall of a foremost champion shattered morale, revealing how an army’s resolve often depends on its leaders’ steadiness and the perceived righteousness and momentum of its cause.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and psychological reality of war: when a principal leader falls, collective resolve collapses. It implicitly warns that power built on fragile confidence—rather than disciplined duty and clarity of purpose—quickly turns to retreat when circumstances reverse.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that after Śalya, the Madra king and a major Kaurava commander, is killed in battle, the Kaurava troops and Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons largely lose heart and turn away from fighting.