Shloka 133

Devanagari script

नाभ्यपद्यन्त समरे काज्चिच्चेष्टां महारथा: । महाराज! युद्धमें अत्यन्त थके हुए महारथी योद्धा निद्रासे अंधे हो रहे थे; अतः संग्राममें कोई चेष्टा नहीं कर पाते थे

Transliteration

nābhyapadyanta samare kāścid ceṣṭāṃ mahārathāḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya dit : Ô grand roi, au cœur du combat, les grands guerriers de char ne pouvaient même plus tenter la moindre action. Épuisés par la lutte prolongée et accablés de somnolence, comme aveuglés, ils ne parvenaient plus à s’employer dans la mêlée. La scène rappelle une vérité morale de la guerre : au-delà de la stratégie et de la vaillance, les limites humaines—fatigue, confusion et émoussement du discernement—peuvent suspendre même les plus puissants de toute conduite intentionnelle.

Word by Word

नnot

अभ्यपद्यन्तthey advanced/engaged (in action)

समरेin battle

काःwhat/any (which?)

चित्ever/at all (enclitic, giving indefiniteness)

चेष्टाम्effort, action

महारथाःgreat chariot-warriors

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

mahārathāḥ (great warriors)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even the greatest warriors are bound by human limits; when exhaustion and drowsiness overtake the mind, purposeful action and discernment collapse—highlighting the ethical cost and dehumanizing strain of prolonged war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that on the battlefield the elite fighters had become so worn out that they could not initiate any effective movement or effort, causing a lull in active combat.