Shloka 416
प्रायशो विमुखं सर्व नावतिष्ठत भारत । धनुर्धर पाण्डुकुमारकी मार खाकर आपकी वह सारी सेना प्रायः पीठ दिखाकर भाग चली। वहाँ क्षणभरके लिये भी ठहर न सकी
prāyaśo vimukhaṃ sarvaṃ nāvatiṣṭhata bhārata | dhanurdhara-pāṇḍu-kumāra-kī mār khākar āpākī vah sārī senā prāyaḥ pīṭha dikhākar bhāga calī | vahā̃ kṣaṇabhar ke liye bhī ṭhahar na sakī |
Sañjaya dit : « Ô Bhārata, presque toute l’armée se détourna et ne put tenir sa position. Frappée par les archers parmi les fils de Pāṇḍu, ta troupe, pour l’essentiel, montra son dos et s’enfuit, incapable de demeurer là ne fût-ce qu’un instant. »
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a battlefield ethic central to kṣatriya-dharma: steadiness under pressure. When discipline and morale collapse, even a large force becomes ineffective; courage and cohesion are portrayed as decisive moral and strategic qualities.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava host, struck by the Pāṇḍavas’ archers, largely turns its back and flees, unable to hold position even briefly—signaling a sudden shift in momentum on the field.