Shloka 5

Devanagari script

असहाविक्रान्तमदीनसत्त्व॑ सर्वे गणा भारत ये त्वदीया: । सहसनेत्रप्रतिमप्रभावं दिवीव सूर्य जलदव्यपाये,भारत! सात्यकिका पराक्रम असहा था। उनका धैर्य और बल महान्‌ था। वे इन्द्रके समान प्रभावशाली तथा आकाशमें प्रकाशित होनेवाले शरत्कालके सूर्यके समान प्रचण्ड तेजस्वी थे। आपके समस्त सैनिक मिलकर भी उन्हें रोक न सके

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca |

asahāvikrāntam adīnasattvaṁ sarve gaṇā bhārata ye tvadīyāḥ |

sahasranetrapratimaprabhāvaṁ divīva sūryaṁ jaladavyapāye ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: O Bhārata, all those troops of yours could not withstand him—so irresistible was his advance, so unbroken his courage. He shone with a splendor like the Thousand-eyed Indra, and like the sun blazing in the autumn sky when the clouds have dispersed. Even united, your forces were unable to check his onrush.

Word by Word

• {'asaha': 'unendurable

• impossible to withstand', 'vikrānta': 'striding forth

• valorous movement', 'adīna-sattva': 'undaunted spirit

• unfallen courage', 'sarve gaṇāḥ': 'all the groups/hosts (of troops)', 'bhārata': 'O descendant of Bharata (address to Dhṛtarāṣṭra)', 'tvadīyāḥ': 'your (belonging to you)', 'sahasra-netra': 'the thousand-eyed one (Indra)', 'pratima': 'comparable to

• like', 'prabhāva': 'power

• radiance', 'divi iva': 'as if in heaven/sky

• like in the sky', 'sūrya': 'sun', 'jalada': 'cloud', 'vyapāye': 'when dispersed/removed

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhārata (Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• Indra (Sahasranetra)
• Sun (Sūrya)
• Clouds (Jalada)
• Your troops (Kaurava host)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical ideal of steadfast courage in righteous duty: a warrior who does not lose heart (adīna-sattva) and advances irresistibly becomes a moral and psychological force on the battlefield, capable of breaking collective resistance.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a single opposing hero (understood in context as Sātyaki) is advancing with such power and radiance—likened to Indra and the clear autumn sun—that the Kaurava troops together cannot restrain him.