Shloka 40
Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)
निरीक्षितो5सौ नरदेव राज्ञा पूतात्मना निर्हटकल्मषेण । आसीजन्न यद् भस्मसान्मद्रराज- स्तदद्भुतं मे प्रतिभाति राजन्
nirīkṣito ’sau naradeva rājñā pūtātmanā nirhaṭa-kalmaṣeṇa | āsījan na yad bhasmasān madra-rājas tad adbhutaṃ me pratibhāti rājan ||
Sañjaya said: O King, that Madra ruler was closely observed by the king—pure in spirit and with all taint driven away—yet he did not sit down upon the ashes. This strikes me, O King, as something truly wondrous. In the midst of war’s harsh necessities, the verse highlights a surprising restraint and inner purity: even when a grim act might be expected, the noble-minded ruler refrains from a gesture associated with defilement and despair, suggesting an ethical self-governance that persists amid violence.
संजय उवाच