Shloka 25
केचिच्चैनममन्यन्त तथैव विमुखीकृतम् । हतो राजेति राजेन्द्र ब्राह्मणेन महात्मना,राजेन्द्र! कुछ लोग ऐसा समझते थे कि युधिष्ठिर पराजित होकर भाग गये। कुछ लोगोंकी यही धारणा थी कि महामनस्वी ब्राह्मण द्रोणाचार्यके हाथसे राजा युधिष्ठिर मार डाले गये
kecic cainam amanyanta tathaiva vimukhīkṛtam | hato rājeti rājendra brāhmaṇena mahātmanā ||
Sañjaya said: Some thought that he (Yudhiṣṭhira) had been routed and driven to turn away in flight. Others, O best of kings, believed that the king had been slain by the great-souled brāhmaṇa (Droṇa). The report reveals how, amid the confusion of battle, perception and rumor eclipse certainty, and how the fall of a righteous ruler becomes an ethical shock that unsettles the whole field.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In war, uncertainty and hearsay spread rapidly; ethical stability depends on discernment. The verse highlights how the presumed fall of a dharmic king becomes a moral tremor, showing that truth and right judgment are easily obscured amid violence and fear.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that different groups on the battlefield formed conflicting impressions: some believed Yudhiṣṭhira had been repulsed and fled, while others believed he had been killed by the great brāhmaṇa-warrior Droṇa.