Shloka 26
Dvaipāyana-hrade Duryodhanasya Māyā — Yudhiṣṭhirasya Dharmoktiḥ (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 30)
तांस्तथा समुदीक्ष्याथ कौरवाणां महारथान् | अयुद्धमनसं चैव राजानं स्थितमम्भसि,राजन! उन कौरवमहारथियोंकी वैसी मनोवृत्ति जानकर जलमें ठहरे हुए राजा दुर्योधनके मनमें युद्धका उत्साह न देखकर और सलिलनिवासी नरेशके साथ उन तीनोंका संवाद सुनकर व्याध यह समझ गये कि दुर्योधन इसी सरोवरके जलमें छिपा हुआ है!
tāṁs tathā samudīkṣyātha kauravāṇāṁ mahārathān | ayudhamanasaṁ caiva rājānaṁ sthitam ambhasi ||
Melihat para maharathi Kaurava dalam keadaan demikian, dan menyadari bahwa sang raja yang berdiri di air tidak berkehendak untuk bertempur, serta setelah mendengar percakapan ketiga orang itu dengan raja yang bersemayam di air, para pemburu pun mengerti bahwa Duryodhana bersembunyi di dalam air danau itu.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and psychological collapse that follows sustained adharma: when a leader abandons the warrior’s duty and hides, the community’s remaining strength becomes directionless, and truth is exposed through observation and testimony.
Sañjaya reports that the hunter, after observing the Kaurava great warriors and realizing the king in the water lacked the will to fight, and after hearing the exchange with the water-hidden king, inferred that Duryodhana was concealed in that very lake.