Shloka 28
Vāsudeva-Māhātmya: Duryodhana’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Theological Account of Keśava
शलभा इव राजान: पतन्ति विधिचोदिता:
śalabhā iva rājānaḥ patanti vidhicoditāḥ
Sañjaya berkata: Didorong oleh kuasa takdir, raja-raja rebah—laksana rama-rama malam menerjah nyala api—tertarik tanpa daya menuju kebinasaan di tengah bara perang yang melahap segalanya.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how even powerful rulers can be swept along by destiny and destructive impulses, rushing toward ruin as blindly as moths toward fire—an ethical warning about unchecked ambition and the tragic momentum of war.
Sañjaya, narrating the battlefield events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, comments on the kings engaged in the Kurukṣetra war: compelled by fate and circumstance, they are falling in battle in great numbers, likened to moths perishing in flame.