Shloka 56

Devanagari script

दुर्योधनमिदं वाक्यमब्रवीद्‌ युद्धुलालस: । रात्रिमें होनेवाले इस संग्रामका समाचार पाकर रणभूमिमें भीमसेनको मार डालनेकी इच्छासे वह मतवाले हाथी और क्रोधमें भरे हुए सर्पकी भाँति युद्धकी लालसा मनमें रखकर दुर्योधनसे इस प्रकार बोला--

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | duryodhanam idaṃ vākyam abravīd yuddhulālasaḥ |

Translation

Sanjaya said: Burning with eagerness for battle, he spoke these words to Duryodhana. Having learned that a night-fight was about to occur, and driven by the desire to slay Bhīmasena even on the battlefield, he addressed Duryodhana with a mind inflamed by wrath—like a maddened elephant or an enraged serpent—revealing the escalating moral darkness of war where vengeance overrides restraint.

Word by Word

दुर्योधनम्Duryodhana (as object: to Duryodhana)

इदम्this

वाक्यम्speech; words; statement

अब्रवीत्said; spoke

युद्ध-उलालसःeager for battle

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Duryodhana

Bhimasena

night battle (rātri-saṅgrāma)

battlefield (raṇabhūmi)

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?

The verse highlights how unchecked anger and vengeance can dominate judgment in war, pushing leaders toward ever harsher choices; it implicitly warns that ethical restraint (dharma) erodes when the mind becomes 'battle-hungry' and driven by personal hatred.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya narrates that a warrior, eager for combat and intent on killing Bhimasena, speaks to Duryodhana upon hearing of an impending night battle, signaling a turn toward more desperate and morally fraught tactics.