Shloka 523
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection
अपश्यतो दीर्घबाहुं रक्ताक्ष॑ यन्न दीर्यते । “निश्चय ही मेरा यह हृदय अत्यन्त सुदृढ़ एवं वज़्सारका बना हुआ है, तभी तो लाल नेत्रोंवाले महाबाहु अभिमन्युको न देखनेपर भी यह फट नहीं जाता है
apaśyato dīrghabāhuṁ raktākṣaṁ yan na dīryate | niścaya hi mama yad hṛdayam atyanta-sudṛḍhaṁ vajra-sārakaṁ bhūtaṁ, yatas tato raktanetraṁ mahābāhum abhimanyum apaśyato 'pi na vidīryate ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Sungguh, hatiku telah menjadi amat teguh—keras laksana wajra—sebab meski aku tak memandang Abhimanyu, sang pahlawan berlengan panjang bermata merah darah, hatiku ini tidak juga terbelah.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and emotional cost of war: even a hardened heart is tested by the loss of a righteous hero. It suggests that endurance in the face of tragedy can feel unnatural—almost like becoming 'vajra-like'—and invites reflection on how violence forces people to suppress grief.
Sañjaya, reporting the events of the Kurukṣetra war, expresses shock and restrained sorrow: despite not seeing Abhimanyu (the long-armed, red-eyed warrior), his heart has not broken, which he attributes to an unnaturally hardened resolve amid the calamity surrounding Abhimanyu’s fate.