Shloka 35
ततः शारद्वधतं राजा सव्रीडमिदमब्रवीत् । शंसात्र भद्र ते सर्व यथा सैन्यमिदं द्रुतम्,उस समय राजा दुर्योधनने कृपाचार्यसे संकोचपूर्वक कहा--“गुरुदेव! आपका कल्याण हो। आप ही वह सब समाचार बता दीजिये, जिससे यह सब सेना भागी जा रही है!
tataḥ śāradvadhataṁ rājā savrīḍam idam abravīt | śaṁsātra bhadra te sarvaṁ yathā sainyam idaṁ drutam ||
Sañjaya said: Then the king, ashamed, spoke these words: “O venerable one, may you be well. Tell me here everything exactly as it is—how it is that this entire army is fleeing in haste.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in war, a ruler is accountable for the morale and safety of his forces; shame here signals recognition of failure in leadership, and the ethical response is to seek truthful counsel rather than deny reality.
As the Kaurava army breaks and runs, Duryodhana—embarrassed—turns to Kṛpācārya and asks him to report the full reason and manner of the rout.