Shloka 73

अध्याय ९ — कर्णस्य प्रहारः, योधयुग्मनियोजनम्, शैनेय-कैकेययोर्युद्धविन्यासः

Devanagari script

दुर्मर्षणं हतं दृष्टवा वृषसेनं च संयुगे

Transliteration

durmarṣaṇaṁ hataṁ dṛṣṭvā vṛṣasenaṁ ca saṁyuge | vidrutān rathino dṛṣṭvā manye śocati putrakaḥ ||

Translation

ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「ドゥルマルシャナが討たれ、ヴリシャセーナが戦場に倒れ、さらに車戦士たちが乱れて逃げ散るのを見て、わが子は嘆いていると思われる。援軍の王たちが潰走し、戦う者が背を向けるのは、意志の崩壊のしるしである。かかる光景は、戦の苛烈な代償として、父の胸を悲しみで刺し貫くであろう。」

Word by Word

• {'durmarṣaṇam': 'Durmarṣaṇa (a Kaurava prince), accusative singular', 'hatam': 'slain, killed', 'dṛṣṭvā': 'having seen', 'vṛṣasenam': 'Vṛṣasena (son of Karṇa), accusative singular', 'ca': 'and', 'saṁyuge': 'in battle, in the conflict', 'vidrutān': 'fleeing, routed, in flight', 'rathinaḥ (rathino)': 'chariot-warriors

• fighters mounted on chariots', 'manye': 'I think, I suppose', 'śocati': 'grieves, laments', 'putrakaḥ': 'my son (affectionate/diminutive usage)'}

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana
• Durmarṣaṇa
• Vṛṣasena
• rathins (chariot-warriors)
• saṁyuga (battlefield)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the human cost of war: even for those committed to kṣatriya duty, the sight of comrades slain and allies fleeing brings grief and moral weight. It underscores how battlefield outcomes affect not only strategy but also the inner world of those bound by loyalty and kinship.

What is happening in the narrative?

After Durmarṣaṇa and Vṛṣasena are seen slain and the chariot-warriors are observed fleeing, the speaker infers that his son is lamenting. The scene depicts a breakdown of the Kaurava side’s cohesion—rout and retreat—prompting sorrow and foreboding.