Shloka 12
द्रोणपर्व (अध्याय १) — भीष्मनिधनानन्तरं धृतराष्ट्रस्य शोकः, सेनायाः स्थितिः, कर्णस्मरणं च
Droṇa Parva, Chapter 1: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s grief after Bhīṣma’s fall and the army’s reorientation toward Karṇa
को हि दौर्योधने सैन्ये पुमानासीन्महारथ: । य॑ं प्राप्प समरे वीरा न त्रस्यन्ति महाभये,उस महान् भयके अवसरपर दुर्योधनकी सेनामें कौन ऐसा वीर महारथी पुरुष था, जिसका आश्रय पाकर समरांगणमें वीर कौरव भयभीत नहीं हुए हैं
ko hi dauryodhane sainye pumān āsīn mahārathaḥ | yaṁ prāpya samare vīrā na trasyanti mahābhaye ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「ドゥルヨーダナの軍の中で、いったい誰がその勇ましき大車戦士であったのか――その者を頼みとすれば、カウラヴァの勇士たちは戦の大いなる恐怖のただ中にあっても、戦場で震えなかったのだ？」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how morale in war often depends on reliance upon a single outstanding leader (mahāratha). Ethically, it points to the power—and risk—of placing collective confidence in one figure: courage can be strengthened by capable leadership, yet such dependence also reveals the fragility of an army’s inner steadiness.
Vaiśampāyana frames a question about the Kaurava side: in Duryodhana’s forces, which great warrior served as the pillar of confidence such that, under his protection or association, the Kaurava heroes did not panic even in the most frightening moments of battle.