Shloka 61
हताश्वश्व ततस्तूर्ण वृषकस्य रथं ययौ । श्यालस्य ते महाराज तव पुत्रस्य पश्यत:,महाराज! तब घोड़ोंके मारे जानेपर कृतवर्मा आपके पुत्रके देखते-देखते तुरंत ही आपके साले वृषकके रथपर सवार हो गया
hatāśvaśvaḥ tataḥ tūrṇaṁ vṛṣakasya rathaṁ yayau | śyālasya te mahārāja tava putrasya paśyataḥ ||
Sañjaya said: When his horses had been slain, Kṛtavarman quickly went to the chariot of Vṛṣaka—your brother-in-law, O King—doing so in full view of your son. The moment underscores battlefield pragmatism: preserving a warrior’s capacity to fight by immediately securing transport, even as kinship ties and the prince’s witness heighten the moral pressure of the scene.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In war-narrative terms, the verse highlights the duty to remain effective in one’s role: when a chariot is disabled (horses killed), a warrior must promptly restore mobility. Ethically, it also frames action under scrutiny—choices made ‘in the presence’ of a prince carry added responsibility and reflect on loyalty and composure amid crisis.
Kṛtavarman’s chariot becomes unusable because its horses are killed. He immediately goes to and mounts the chariot of Vṛṣaka, identified as Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s brother-in-law, and this occurs while Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son is watching.