Shloka 17
Chapter 137: Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki) Slays Somadatta; Yudhiṣṭhira Redirected from Droṇa
उक्त संरम्भिणोग्रेण कुरूणां शृण्वतां तदा । तन्नूनमभिसंचिन्त्य दृष्टवा कर्ण च निर्जितम्
ukta-samhiogrea kur6b01 bvat01 tad01 | tan n6bnam abhisacintya dv01 kara ca nirjitam ||
Dhtar01ra said: When those fierce, impetuous words were spoken in the hearing of the Kurus, it must have been after reflecting on that that he saw Kara as defeated. In the midst of war-counsel and wounded pride, the king reads the moral weight of speech: harsh words, once uttered before ones own people, can harden resolve and shape how victory and defeat are perceived.
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical force of speech in a public setting: harsh, impulsive words spoken before ones own community can intensify conflict and influence judgments about honor, resolve, and even the meaning of defeat.
Dhtar01ra recalls that fierce words were spoken while the Kurus listened; he infers that, after considering that exchange, someone (implicitly a key actor in the war-counsel) came to view Kara as having been overcome.