Shloka 3
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ७२: सैन्यगुणवर्णनम्, व्यूहरक्षा, दैव-पुरुषकारचिन्ता
पाण्डवा धारराष्ट्राश्न॒ राजन दुर्मन्त्रिते तव । व्यूही च व्यूह[ु संरब्धा: सम्प्रहृष्टा: प्रहारिण:,सबने एक-दूसरेको जीतनेकी इच्छासे अत्यन्त क्रोधमें भरकर विपक्षी सेनापर आक्रमण किया। राजन्! आपकी कुमन्त्रणाके फलस्वरूप आपके पुत्र और पाण्डव एक- दूसरेको देखकर कुपित हो सब-के-सब अपने सहायकोंके साथ आकर सेनाकी व्यूह-रचना करके हर्ष और उत्साहमें भरकर परस्पर प्रहार करनेको उद्यत हो गये
sañjaya uvāca | pāṇḍavā dhārtarāṣṭrāś ca rājan durmantrite tava | vyūhī ca vyūhya saṃrabdhāḥ samprahṛṣṭāḥ prahāriṇaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: O King, because of your ill counsel, both the Pāṇḍavas and the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, having drawn up their battle-formations and counter-formations, became fiercely intent, exhilarated and eager to strike—each side rushing to attack the opposing army, driven by anger and the desire to overcome the other.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores royal accountability: a king’s flawed counsel and policy (durmantrita) can inflame conflict and drive entire communities into destructive violence. It frames the war not as an impersonal inevitability but as a consequence of human choices—especially the choices of those in power.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that both armies—the Pāṇḍavas and the Kauravas—have arranged their respective battle formations and, filled with anger and martial exhilaration, are poised to strike each other on the battlefield.