Shloka 30

Devanagari script

त्वं चापि न यथापूर्व प्रकृतिस्थो नराधिप । कर्णप्रभृतयश्चेमे नावतिष्ठन्ति पार्थिव,“नरेश्वर! तुम भी पहलेके समान स्वस्थ नहीं दिखायी देते। भूपाल! ये कर्ण आदि वीर भी रणभूमिमें खड़े नहीं हो रहे हैं। इसका क्या कारण है?

Transliteration

tvaṃ cāpi na yathāpūrvaṃ prakṛtistho narādhipa | karṇaprabhṛtayaś ceme nāvatiṣṭhanti pārthiva ||

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai raja, engkau pun tidak tampak setenang dan seteguh seperti dahulu. Dan para kesatria ini, mulai dari Karna, tidak bertahan di medan laga. Apa sebabnya?”

Word by Word

त्वम्you

चand

अपिalso/even

नnot

यथाas/like

पूर्वम्formerly/before

प्रकृतिस्थःstanding in one’s normal state; composed/healthy

नराधिपO king (lord of men)

कर्णप्रभृतयःKarna and the others (beginning with Karna)

चand

इमेthese

नnot

अवतिष्ठन्तिstand firm / remain stationed

पार्थिवO king (earth-lord)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Dhritarashtra

Karna

battlefield (raṇabhūmi)

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?

The verse highlights the ethical burden of kingship in war: a ruler’s inner steadiness directly affects the army’s resolve. Loss of composure in leadership signals a deeper crisis—fear, doubt, or recognition of impending adharma—and can cause even great warriors to falter.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that the king seems unusually unsettled, and that Karna and other prominent fighters are not maintaining their positions in battle. He asks what has caused this sudden hesitation and instability.