Shloka 13
एतद् दुःखं सारथे धर्मराजो यन्मां हित्वा यातवान् शत्रुमध्ये । नैनं जीवं नाद्य जानाम्यजीवं बीभत्सुं वा तन्ममाद्यातिदुः:खम्
etad duḥkhaṃ sārathe dharmarājo yan māṃ hitvā yātavān śatrumadhye | nainaṃ jīvaṃ nādya jānāmy ajīvaṃ bībhatsuṃ vā tan mamādyātiduḥkham ||
Sañjaya said: “O charioteer, this is the grief that weighs upon Dharmarāja: that, abandoning me, he went into the midst of the enemy. Even now I do not know whether Bībhatsu is alive or not alive—this, today, is my overwhelming sorrow.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of leadership in war: a righteous king’s suffering is intensified not merely by danger itself but by responsibility for companions and uncertainty about their fate. It underscores how dharma in conflict includes care, accountability, and the moral burden of decisions made amid chaos.
Sañjaya reports that Yudhiṣṭhira is distressed because Arjuna (called Bībhatsu) has gone into the enemy ranks after leaving him behind. Yudhiṣṭhira does not know whether Arjuna is alive or dead, and this uncertainty becomes his acute sorrow.