Shloka 150
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
यदाओ्ष॑ धनुरायम्य चित्र विद्धं लक्ष्यं पातितं वै पृथिव्याम् । कृष्णां द्वतां प्रेक्षतां सर्वराज्ञां तदा नाशंसे विजयाय संजय,संजय! जब मैंने सुना कि अर्जुनने धनुषपर बाण चढ़ाकर अद्भुत लक्ष्य बेध दिया और उसे धरतीपर गिरा दिया। साथ ही सब राजाओंके सामने, जबकि वे टुकुर-टुकुर देखते ही रह गये, बलपूर्वक द्रौपदीको ले आया, तभी मैंने विजयकी आशा छोड़ दी थी
yadā oṣa dhanuḥ āyamya citra viddhaṁ lakṣyaṁ pātitaṁ vai pṛthivyām | kṛṣṇāṁ dṛṣṭvā tāṁ prekṣatāṁ sarvarājñāṁ tadā nāśaṁse vijayāya sañjaya ||
When I heard that Arjuna, drawing his bow, had struck the wondrous target and caused it to fall upon the earth—and that, while all the kings stood staring on, he then carried off Kṛṣṇā (Draupadī) by force—at that moment, O Sañjaya, I abandoned all hope of victory. The deed revealed a decisive superiority of skill and resolve, and it signaled that righteousness and rightful prowess were no longer on our side.
Educational Q&A
A single act that unites extraordinary skill with rightful resolve can shift the moral and political balance: when dharma-backed capability becomes evident, those opposing it sense the collapse of their prospects.
The speaker recalls hearing that Arjuna successfully hit the difficult target in the contest and, before the assembled kings could respond, took Draupadī as the bride; this news is presented as the moment the speaker lost hope of winning against the Pāṇḍavas.