Shloka 3
Adhyāya 86: Irāvān’s Lineage, Cavalry Clash, and the Māyā-Duel Ending in Irāvān’s Fall
जीयमानान् विमनसो मामकान् विगतौजस: । वदसे संयुगे सूत दिष्टमेतन्न संशय:,मेरे पुत्रोंको तेज और बलसे हीन, खिन्नचित्त और युद्धमें पराजित बताते हो। संजय! यह सब प्रारब्धका ही खेल है, इसमें संशय नहीं है
jīyamānān vimanaso māmakān vigataujasaḥ | vadase saṃyuge sūta diṣṭam etan na saṃśayaḥ ||
You describe my own sons as being overcome—downcast in mind and stripped of vigor—defeated in the battle, O charioteer. This, indeed, is the working of destiny; of that there is no doubt.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a common Mahābhārata tension: interpreting defeat and loss as 'diṣṭa' (destiny). It reflects how rulers may seek certainty and consolation in fate when confronted with the collapse of power and morale, even while the epic elsewhere insists that human choices and adharma have consequences.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra responds to Sañjaya’s report from the battlefield: he hears that his side (the Kauravas) is being overcome, dispirited, and weakened. Addressing Sañjaya as 'sūta,' he concludes that such reversals must be the work of destiny and declares there is no doubt about it.