Shloka 66
Dvaipāyana-hrade Duryodhanasya Māyā — Yudhiṣṭhirasya Dharmoktiḥ (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 30)
कथं नु युद्ध भविता कथं राजा भविष्यति । कथं नु पाण्डवा राजनू् प्रतिपत्स्यन्ति कौरवम्
sañjaya uvāca | kathaṃ nu yuddhaṃ bhavitā kathaṃ rājā bhaviṣyati | kathaṃ nu pāṇḍavā rājan pratipatsyanti kauravam ||
Sañjaya said: “How, indeed, will the battle now proceed? What will become of the king? And how, O King, will the Pāṇḍavas come to find the Kaurava?” Thus, with anxious foreboding about the course of war and the fate of Duryodhana, the great chariot-warriors—beginning with Kripācārya—unharnessed their horses and sat down to rest, weighed down by uncertainty.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and psychological collapse that follows adharma-driven conflict: when leadership is endangered and the war’s direction becomes unclear, even great warriors are shaken. It underscores how uncertainty and fear arise when the ethical foundation of action is compromised and outcomes are no longer controllable.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that senior Kaurava-side warriors, led by Kripacharya, are anxious about how the battle can continue and what will happen to Duryodhana. In that worried state they unharness their horses from the chariots and sit down to rest, reflecting a pause and disarray in the Kaurava camp.