Shloka 576
Duryodhana-patana-anuśocana
The Fall of Duryodhana and the Contest of Restraint
प्राकम्पन्त ततो राजंस्तव पुत्रे निपातिते । राजन! आपके पुत्रके धराशायी हो जानेपर वहाँ अस्त्र-शस्त्र और ध्वजावाले सभी वीर काँपने लगे
prākampanta tato rājan tava putre nipātite |
O King, when your son had been struck down and lay fallen, the warriors there—bearing weapons and banners—began to tremble. The verse underscores how the fall of a single prominent fighter can shake an entire host, revealing the fragility of morale amid the violence of war and the swift reversal of fortune that follows adharma-driven conflict.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the instability of worldly power and the psychological reality of war: when a key figure falls, even armed and bannered heroes can lose steadiness. It implicitly warns that pride in strength is unreliable and that violence rapidly produces fear, grief, and collapse of confidence.
Vāyudeva addresses a king and describes the battlefield reaction: after the king’s son is felled and lies on the ground, the surrounding warriors—despite their weapons and standards—begin to tremble, indicating shock and a sudden weakening of the army’s morale.