Shloka 52
तव पुत्रकृतोत्साहा: पर्यवर्तन्त ते ततः । पर्यवस्थाप्य चात्मानमन्योन्येन पुनस्तदा । सर्वे राजन् न्यवर्तन्त क्षत्रिया: कालचोदिता:,राजन! वे कालप्रेरित समस्त क्षत्रिय आपके पुत्रद्वारा उत्साह देनेपर एक-दूसरेके द्वारा मनको स्थिर करके पुन: रणभूमिकी ओर लौटे
tava putrakṛtotsāhāḥ paryavartanta te tataḥ | paryavasthāpya cātmānam anyonyena punas tadā | sarve rājan nyavartanta kṣatriyāḥ kālacoditāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Thereafter, those warriors—heartened by your son—turned back. Steadying their minds again through mutual encouragement, all the kṣatriyas, O King, driven onward by Time itself, returned once more to the battlefield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dual causality in human action: immediate motivation arises from leadership and mutual support, but the larger movement of events is portrayed as governed by Kāla (Time/destiny). It invites reflection on agency in dharmic conflict—effort is real, yet outcomes unfold within an overarching cosmic order.
After a moment of wavering or withdrawal, the kṣatriya warriors regain courage because Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son (Duryodhana) rouses them. They compose themselves through mutual encouragement and then collectively return to the fight, described as being driven onward by the force of Time.