Shloka 172
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
यदाश्रौष॑ निर्जितस्याधनस्य प्रत्राजितस्य स्वजनात् प्रच्युतस्य । अक्षौहिणी: सप्त युधिष्ठिरस्य तदा नाशंसे विजयाय संजय,संजय! युथधिष्छिर जूएमें पराजित हैं, निर्धन हैं, घरसे निकाले हुए हैं और अपने सगे- सम्बन्धियोंसे बिछुड़े हुए हैं। फिर भी जब मैंने सुना कि उनके पास सात अक्षौहिणी सेना एकत्र हो चुकी है, तभी विजयके लिये मेरे मनमें जो आशा थी, उसपर पानी फिर गया
yadāśrauṣaṁ nirjitasya adhanasya pratrājitasya svajanāt pracyutasya | akṣauhiṇīḥ sapta yudhiṣṭhirasya tadā nāśaṁse vijayāya saṁjaya saṁjaya ||
When I heard that Yudhiṣṭhira—defeated in the dice-game, stripped of wealth, driven out, and cut off from his own kin—had nevertheless gathered seven akṣauhiṇīs of troops, then, Saṁjaya, all the hope I had for victory was extinguished. The news revealed that even those wronged and exiled can rally immense support through legitimacy and alliances, making the coming conflict morally and politically perilous.
Educational Q&A
Power and victory are not determined only by immediate fortune (wealth, residence, or courtly favor). Even the defeated and exiled can command support when their cause is seen as legitimate; thus ethical standing and alliances can overturn apparent disadvantage.
The speaker reports hearing that Yudhiṣṭhira—though ruined by defeat and exile—has assembled seven akṣauhiṇīs. This intelligence causes the speaker’s confidence in victory to collapse, signaling the scale of opposition and the seriousness of the impending war.