सर्वे चास्य महीपाला योगक्षेममुपासते । पश्येदानीं यथा भद्रे विनष्टा: पाण्डवा: समम्
sarve cāsya mahīpālā yogakṣemam upāsate | paśyedānīṁ yathā bhadre vinaṣṭāḥ pāṇḍavāḥ samam ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Semua raja di sini menjaga yoga-kṣema-nya—keamanan dan kesejahteraannya. Kini, wahai wanita mulia, lihatlah bagaimana para Pāṇḍava telah dibinasakan bersama-sama.”
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights how political power attracts service and allegiance (“kings attend upon his welfare”), while also warning of the fragility of fortune in war—ruin can come swiftly and collectively, regardless of prior strength.
Sañjaya reports to a noble lady (contextually a royal listener) that many rulers are aligned in support of a leading figure’s security, and he urges her to witness the present state of the battle in which the Pāṇḍavas are portrayed as having been brought to destruction together.