Shloka 72
Chapter 23: Śakuni Reports, Kaurava Advance, and Arjuna’s Penetration of the Host
अन्योन्यं प्रतिसंरब्धा: समासाद्य परस्परम् । अहं पूर्वमहं पूर्वमिति न्यघ्नन् सहस्रश:
anyonyam pratisaṃrabdhāḥ samāsādya parasparam | ahaṃ pūrvam ahaṃ pūrvam iti nyaghnan sahasraśaḥ ||
Sañjaya dit : Se ruant l’un sur l’autre dans une fureur partagée, se heurtant face à face, ils se mirent à abattre des hommes par milliers, chacun criant : « Moi d’abord — non, moi d’abord ! » Dans l’aveuglement de la rivalité, la bataille devint une lutte de préséance, où colère et orgueil poussèrent le carnage au-delà de toute mesure.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how egoistic rivalry—insisting on being “first”—can eclipse discernment and restraint, turning conflict into indiscriminate destruction. It implicitly warns that anger and pride on the battlefield (and in life) accelerate harm and weaken dharmic judgment.
Sañjaya describes the combat intensifying: warriors from both armies collide directly, enraged, and in the rush to outdo one another they kill in vast numbers, shouting that they will strike first.