Shloka 17

अध्याय ९ — कर्णस्य प्रहारः, योधयुग्मनियोजनम्, शैनेय-कैकेययोर्युद्धविन्यासः

Devanagari script

यो बल धार्तराष्ट्राणां पाण्डवानां यतो भयम्‌

Transliteration

yo bala dhārtarāṣṭrāṇāṃ pāṇḍavānāṃ yato bhayam

Translation

Siapakah sandaran kekuatan bagi putra-putra Dhṛtarāṣṭra, dan dari siapakah para Pāṇḍava merasa gentar?

Word by Word

• यः: who
• यः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• बलम्: strength; force
• बलम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• धार्तराष्ट्राणाम्: of the Dhārtarāṣṭras (sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• धार्तराष्ट्राणाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धार्तराष्ट्र
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• पाण्डवानाम्: of the Pāṇḍavas
• पाण्डवानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डव
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• यतः: from whom; because of whom
• यतः: Apadana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतस्

• भयम्: fear
• भयम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भय
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• धृतराष्ट्र (Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• धार्तराष्ट्राः (Dhārtarāṣṭras / Kauravas)
• पाण्डवाः (Pāṇḍavas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a ruler’s concern with the true sources of power and fear in war—implying that victory depends not only on numbers but on the decisive agent (leader, champion, or strategy) who becomes the pivot of confidence for one side and dread for the other.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra questions Sañjaya about the battlefield balance: who among the Kauravas serves as their main strength, and which figure or factor makes the Pāṇḍavas afraid—seeking clarity on the decisive forces shaping the conflict in Karṇa Parva.