Shloka 52
Kṛṣṇa at Duryodhana’s House: Refusal of Hospitality and Departure to Vidura (कृष्णस्य धार्तराष्ट्रनिवेशनगमनम्)
तत्रैव धृतराष्ट्रश्न महाराजश्न बाह्विक:ः । कृपश्न सोमदत्तश्न निर्विण्णा: कुरवस्तथा
tatraiva dhṛtarāṣṭraś ca mahārājaś ca bāhlīkaḥ | kṛpaś ca somadattaś ca nirviṇṇāḥ kuravas tathā ||
Allí mismo, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, el gran rey Bāhlīka, Kṛpa y Somadatta—y, en verdad, los Kurus también—quedaron abatidos y cansados de espíritu. El relato subraya una atmósfera moral de agotamiento y derrumbe interior, pues los ancianos y los dirigentes sienten el peso del conflicto inminente y las consecuencias de decisiones que han tensado el dharma.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
When leaders and elders ignore timely counsel and allow adharma to grow, the result is collective moral fatigue—an inner recognition of looming consequences. The verse highlights how ethical failure in governance manifests as despair and loss of resolve even among the most senior figures.
Vaiśampāyana reports that, at that moment and in that place, key Kuru elders—Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Bāhlīka, Kṛpa, and Somadatta—along with the Kurus generally, become dispirited. It signals a turning point of emotional and political heaviness as the crisis intensifies.