Shloka 3

Devanagari script

छिद्रं न सम प्रपश्यन्ति रथयोराशुचारिणो: । आविद्धावेव दृश्येते रथिनौ तौ रथोत्तमौ,(खाण्डववनके प्राणियोंको) शीघ्रतापूर्वक सब ओर दौड़नेवाले उन दोनों महारथियोंका छिद्र नहीं दिखायी देता था, जिससे वे भाग सकें। रथियोंमें श्रेष्ठ वे दोनों रथारूढ़ वीर अलातचक्रकी भाँति सब ओर घूमते हुए ही दीख पड़ते थे

Transliteration

chidraṁ na sama prapaśyanti rathayor āśucāriṇoḥ | āviddhāv eva dṛśyete rathinau tau rathottamau ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: The swiftly moving creatures saw no gap at all between the two chariots—no opening through which they might escape. Those two foremost of chariot-warriors appeared only as whirling figures, like a spinning firebrand’s circle, as they swept around on their chariots, hemming the beings in on every side.

Word by Word

छिद्रम्gap, opening, weak point

नnot

समम्equally, evenly, properly

प्रपश्यन्तिthey see, perceive

रथयोःof the two chariots

आशुचारिणःswift-moving (ones)

आविद्धौwhirling, spinning (as if pierced/impelled)

इवas if, like

दृश्येतेthey are seen, appear

रथिनौthe two chariot-warriors

तौthose two

रथोत्तमौexcellent in chariots / best chariot-warriors

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

two chariots

two foremost chariot-warriors (rathottamau)

creatures of the Khāṇḍava forest (implied by context)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how overwhelming force and speed can eliminate any ‘chidra’ (opening) for the vulnerable—an image that invites ethical reflection on the asymmetry of power and the consequences of martial prowess when turned against living beings.

What is happening in the narrative?

During the Khāṇḍava forest episode, two great chariot-warriors move so rapidly and in such coordinated sweeps that the forest creatures cannot find any gap to flee; the warriors appear like a continuous spinning circle, enclosing the beings on all sides.