Shloka 67
केचिन्नागशतप्राणा: केचित् सर्वास्त्रकोविदा: । निहता: पाण्डवेयैस्ते मन््ये कालस्य पर्ययम्,“कितने ही वीर सौ-सौ हाथियोंके बराबर बलशाली थे और कितने ही सम्पूर्ण अस्त्र- शस्त्रोंकी संचालन-कलामें कुशल थे; किंतु पाण्डवोंने उन सबको मार गिराया। मैं इसे समयका ही फेर समझता हूँ
kecin nāgaśatapraṇāḥ kecit sarvāstrakovidāḥ | nihatāḥ pāṇḍaveyais te manye kālasya paryayam ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Sebahagian daripada mereka memiliki kekuatan seratus ekor gajah; sebahagian lagi mahir dalam penggunaan segala jenis senjata. Namun mereka tetap ditewaskan oleh putera-putera Pāṇḍu. Aku menganggapnya tidak lain daripada putaran Masa—pembalikan yang ditentukan takdir, bukan semata-mata keperkasaan manusia.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even extraordinary strength and complete martial expertise can be overturned by Kāla—the larger, impersonal force of Time and destiny. The verse frames victory and defeat as subject to cosmic reversal, tempering pride in power and highlighting the fragility of human achievement in war.
Sañjaya reflects on the battlefield outcome: warriors of immense might and great weapons-skill were nevertheless killed by the Pāṇḍavas. He interprets this surprising fall of the powerful as a ‘turning of Time’ (kālasya paryaya), implying that events have moved according to fate’s reversal rather than predictable human calculation.