Shloka 160
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
यदाश्रौष॑ विविधास्तत्र चेष्टा धर्मात्मनां प्रस्थितानां वनाय । ज्येष्प्रीत्या क्लिश्यतां पाण्डवानां तदा नाशंसे विजयाय संजय,जब मैंने सुना कि वनमें जाते समय धर्मात्मा पाण्डव धर्मराज युधिष्ठिरके प्रेमवश दुःख पा रहे थे और अपने हृदयका भाव प्रकाशित करनेके लिये विविध प्रकारकी चेष्टाएँ कर रहे थे; संजय! तभी मेरी विजयकी आशा नष्ट हो गयी
yadāśrauṣaṁ vividhās tatra ceṣṭā dharmātmanāṁ prasthitānāṁ vanāya | jyeṣṭha-prītyā kliśyatāṁ pāṇḍavānāṁ tadā nāśaṁse vijayāya sañjaya ||
When I heard of the many different outward signs and gestures shown there by the righteous Pāṇḍavas as they set out for the forest—how, out of love for their eldest (Yudhiṣṭhira), they were suffering—then, Sañjaya, my hope of victory was destroyed. The scene revealed not weakness but a dharmic solidarity and moral force that made triumph against them seem unlikely.
Educational Q&A
Dharma is shown not only in rules but in character: the Pāṇḍavas’ loyalty to their eldest and their willingness to endure hardship for righteousness becomes a moral power. Such ethical cohesion is portrayed as a force that can outweigh mere political or military calculation.
The speaker reports that, upon hearing how the righteous Pāṇḍavas displayed many signs of grief and strain while departing for forest-exile—suffering out of love for their eldest brother—he lost confidence in achieving victory, and addresses this conclusion to Sañjaya.