Shloka 10

Devanagari script

तेतं दृष्टवा महेष्वासं भूतले पतितं नूपम्‌ । मोहमभ्यागमन्‌ सर्वे कृपप्रभूतयो रथा:

Transliteration

taṁ dṛṣṭvā maheṣvāsaṁ bhūtale patitaṁ nṛpam | moham abhyāgaman sarve kṛpaprabhūtayo rathāḥ ||

Translation

Melihat raja pemanah agung itu tergeletak di tanah, semua kesatria kereta—dengan Kṛpa di depan—diliputi kebingungan dan terpaku oleh duka yang mengguncang.

Word by Word

तेthey

तम्him

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

महेष्वासम्the great archer

भूतलेon the ground

पतितम्fallen

नूपम्new/novel (as read); (textually uncertain)

मोहम्delusion, bewilderment

अभ्यागमन्came upon, were seized by

सर्वेall

कृपप्रभूतयःhaving Kripa as chief / led by Kripa

रथाःchariot-warriors, those in chariots

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Kṛpa

the fallen king (nṛpa)

chariot-warriors (rathāḥ)

earth/ground (bhūtala)

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 how attachment to power and violent conflict culminate in sudden collapse, and how even hardened warriors can be seized by moha (bewilderment) when confronted with the fall of a leader—an ethical reminder of war’s destabilizing effect on judgment and duty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a great archer-king has fallen to the ground in battle; seeing this, the surrounding chariot-warriors—led by Kṛpa—are overwhelmed by shock and confusion, momentarily losing composure.