Shloka 643

Devanagari script

सर्वे विचुक्रुशु: श्रुत्वा पुत्राणां तव संक्षयम्‌ । मरनेसे बचे हुए वे तीनों रथी मुझे भी कृपाचार्यके सुसज्जित रथपर बिठाकर छावनीतक ले आये। सूर्य अस्ताचलपर जा चुके थे। वहाँ छावनीके पहरेदार भयसे घबराये हुए थे। आपके पुत्रोंक विनाशका समाचार सुनकर वे सभी फूट-फूटकर रोने लगे

Transliteration

sarve vicukruśuḥ śrutvā putrāṇāṃ tava saṃkṣayam |

Translation

Sanjaya said: Hearing of the destruction of your sons, all of them cried out in grief. The camp-guards, shaken with fear as the sun had already set, broke into loud lamentation when the news of your sons’ ruin reached them—showing how war’s outcomes shatter not only warriors but the entire community that depends on them.

Word by Word

सर्वेall (of them)

विचुक्रुशुःcried out, wailed

श्रुत्वाhaving heard

पुत्राणाम्of (your) sons

तवof you, your

संक्षयम्destruction, annihilation

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by 'tava')

Kaurava sons (Duryodhana and brothers, collectively)

camp guards/sentries (rakṣakāḥ, implied by Hindi gloss)

the camp (śibira, implied by Hindi gloss)

the sun (sūrya, implied by Hindi gloss)

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 underscores the human cost of war: the fall of leaders brings widespread sorrow and fear, reminding that adharma-driven conflict culminates in collective suffering beyond the battlefield.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports that when the camp hears the news that Dhritarashtra’s sons have been destroyed, everyone—especially the frightened sentries at dusk—breaks into loud weeping and lamentation.