Shloka 49
अध्याय १५९ — रात्रौ श्रमविरामः
Night Exhaustion and Brief Pause in Battle
द्रोणेन वार्यमाणास्ते स्वयं तव सुतेन च | नाशक्यन्त महाराज योधा वारयितुं तदा,महाराज! द्रोणाचार्य और स्वयं आपके पुत्र दुर्योधनके मना करनेपर भी उस समय आपके योद्धा रोके न जा सके
droṇena vāryamāṇās te svayaṃ tava sutena ca | nāśakyanta mahārāja yodhā vārayituṃ tadā ||
Sañjaya said: O King, at that time your warriors could not be restrained—though Droṇa tried to hold them back, and even your own son attempted to forbid them. The momentum of battle and factional zeal overran counsel, showing how, once passions are inflamed in war, even revered authority and filial command may fail to check violence.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in the heat of war, collective fury and factional momentum can overpower both moral counsel and legitimate authority. Even a revered teacher (Droṇa) and the king’s own son (Duryodhana) fail to restrain the fighters—suggesting that unchecked passions make dharmic restraint difficult once violence escalates.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava warriors could not be stopped at that moment. Despite Droṇa’s attempts to hold them back and Duryodhana’s own prohibitions, the warriors surged forward, indicating a breakdown of command amid intense battlefield agitation.