Shloka 2
Śalya–Yudhiṣṭhira Duel and the Discharge of the Śakti (शल्यवधप्रसङ्गः)
पीडितास्तावका: सर्वे प्रधावन्तो रणोत्कटा: । क्षणेन चैव पार्थास्ति बहुत्वातू समलोडयन्,युद्धके लिये उन्मत्त रहनेवाले आपके सभी योद्धा यद्यपि पीड़ित हो रहे थे, तथापि संख्यामें अधिक होनेके कारण उन सबने धावा बोलकर क्षणभरमें पाण्डव-योद्धाओंको मथ डाला
pīḍitās tāvakāḥ sarve pradhāvanto raṇotkaṭāḥ | kṣaṇena caiva pārthāṃs tu bahutvāt samaloḍayan ||
Sañjaya dit : Bien que tous tes guerriers fussent pressés et souffrants, eux—farouches, comme ivres de bataille—chargèrent en avant ; et, par la seule supériorité du nombre, ils submergèrent en un instant les combattants Pāṇḍava.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a recurring Mahābhārata insight: in warfare, outcomes can be driven by material factors like numbers and momentum, even when fighters are themselves strained. It implicitly invites reflection on the ethical cost of pressing an advantage through sheer force rather than restraint or righteous purpose.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava troops, though suffering, surged forward with battle-fury and, because they were more numerous, rapidly overpowered and threw the Pāṇḍava fighters into disarray.