Shloka 4
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Bereavement and the Averted Assault on Bhīma (Āyasī Pratimā Episode)
दुर्योधनबलान्मुक्ता वयमेव त्रयो रथा: । सर्वमन्यत् परिक्षीणं सैन्यं ते भरतर्षभ,“भरतश्रेष्ठ! दुर्योधनकी सेनासे केवल हम तीन रथी ही जीवित बचे हैं। आपकी अन्य सारी सेना नष्ट हो गयी”
duryodhanabalān muktā vayam eva trayo rathāḥ | sarvam anyat parikṣīṇaṃ sainyaṃ te bharatarṣabha ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Terlepas daripada kebinasaan bala Duryodhana, hanya kami bertiga—para pahlawan kereta perang—yang masih hidup. Segala yang lain daripada tenteramu telah musnah sama sekali, wahai banteng di antara kaum Bharata.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the catastrophic cost of adharma-driven conflict: even vast armies are reduced to near-total ruin, highlighting impermanence and the moral weight of war’s consequences.
A narrator reports that from Duryodhana’s side only three chariot-warriors remain alive, while the rest of the addressed person’s army has been completely destroyed—setting the grim context for the lamentations and mourning central to the Strī Parva.