Shloka 19
Abhimanyu-śravaṇa-prastāva and Cakravyūha-vinyāsa
Prelude to Abhimanyu’s Account and the Wheel-Formation Deployment
त॑ चाभिमन्युर्वचनात् पितुर्ज्येष्ल्थ भारत । बिभेद दुर्भिदं संख्ये चक्रव्यूहमनेकधा,भारत! यद्यपि उस चक्रव्यूहका भेदन करना अत्यन्त दुष्कर कार्य था तो भी वीर अभिमन्युने अपने ताऊ युधिष्ठिरकी आज्ञासे उस व्यूहका बारंबार भेदन किया
taṁ cābhimanyur vacanāt pitur jyeṣṭha bhārata | bibheda durbhidaṁ saṅkhye cakravyūham anekadhā ||
ಸಂಜಯನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ಭಾರತನೇ! ತಂದೆಯ ಹಿರಿಯ ಸಹೋದರನ (ಯುಧಿಷ್ಠಿರನ) ಆಜ್ಞೆಯಂತೆ, ಯುದ್ಧದಲ್ಲಿ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ದುರ್ಭೇದ್ಯವಾದ ಆ ಚಕ್ರವ್ಯೂಹವನ್ನು ವೀರ ಅಭಿಮನ್ಯು ಮರುಮರು ಭೇದಿಸಿದನು.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores dharma in action: Abhimanyu accepts a perilous duty under legitimate command, showing disciplined obedience and courageous perseverance even against an almost unbreakable military formation.
Sanjaya reports that Abhimanyu, acting on the instruction of his father’s elder (understood as Yudhiṣṭhira, Arjuna’s elder brother), repeatedly breaks into and splits the formidable cakravyūha during the battle.