Shloka 22

Devanagari script

अवेक्षमाणास्त्वन्योन्यं सुसम्मूढा विचेतस: । नाशवनुवन्नवस्थातुं काल्यमाना महात्मना,महामनस्वी कर्णके द्वारा कालके गालमें भेजे जाते हुए मोहित एवं अचेत पांचाल- सैनिक एक-दूसरेकी ओर देखते हुए कहीं भी ठहर न सके

Transliteration

avekṣamāṇās tv anyonyaṃ susammūḍhā vicetasaḥ | nāśakan uvann avasthātuṃ kālyamānā mahātmanā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Bewildered and robbed of clear judgment, the Pāñcāla warriors kept looking at one another; driven on and pressed hard by that great-souled hero, they could not stand their ground anywhere.

Word by Word

अवेक्षमाणाःlooking at

तुbut/indeed

अन्योन्यम्each other, mutually

सुसम्मूढाःutterly bewildered

विचेतसःsenseless, unconscious-minded

नnot

आशन्they were/they could (be)

अनुवन्they were able (to) / they managed (to) (uncertain form)

अवस्थातुम्to stand, to remain

काल्यमानाःbeing driven/impelled (uncertain root)

महात्मनाby the great-souled one

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Pāñcāla warriors

a great-souled hero (mahātmā; contextually a leading Kaurava warrior)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

In war, fear and confusion can dissolve collective resolve; when discernment (cetas) is lost, even trained warriors fail to hold their ground. The verse highlights the ethical weight of leadership and the destructive power of overwhelming force on human judgment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the Pāñcāla troops as mentally shaken and mutually searching each other’s faces, unable to stabilize their formation, because they are being relentlessly driven and pressured by a powerful opposing hero.