Shloka 13
Droṇa’s Defensive Stand and Abhimanyu Commissioned to Breach the Cakravyūha (द्रोणानीक-प्रतिरोधः; सौभद्र-नियोजनम्)
चक्रव्यूह़ो महाराज आचार्येणाभिकल्पित: । तत्र शक्रोपमा: सर्वे राजानो विनिवेशिता:,राजन! आचार्य द्रोणने जिस चक्रव्यूहका निर्माण किया था, उसमें इन्द्रके समान पराक्रम प्रकट करनेवाले समस्त राजाओंका समावेश कर रखा था
cakravyūho mahārāja ācāryeṇābhikalpitaḥ | tatra śakropamāḥ sarve rājāno viniveśitāḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai raja agung, formasi pertempuran bulat (cakravyūha) itu direka oleh sang guru. Di dalamnya ditempatkan semua raja—pahlawan yang keberaniannya disamakan dengan Indra—disusun sehingga formasi itu menjadi menggerunkan dan sukar ditembusi.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how deliberate strategy and disciplined deployment can magnify collective power in war. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s tension between martial skill (kṣatriya-dharma) and the human cost of making battle ‘impenetrable’ through calculated arrangement of heroes.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Droṇa has designed the cakravyūha and has positioned within it many powerful kings, described as Indra-like in valor, to strengthen the formation and control the battlefield.