Shloka 17
Duryodhana-patana-anuśocana
The Fall of Duryodhana and the Contest of Restraint
सुयोधनमिमं भग्नं हतसैन्यं हृदं गतम् । पराजित वनप्रेप्सुं निराशं राज्यलम्भने
suyodhanam imaṁ bhagnaṁ hatasainyaṁ hṛdaṁ gatam | parājitaṁ vanaprepsuṁ nirāśaṁ rājyālambhane
Vāyu disse: “Este Suyodhana está arruinado—seu exército foi destruído e seu ânimo afundou no íntimo. Derrotado, deseja fugir para a floresta e, sem esperança de alcançar o reino, chegou a um colapso interior.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and psychological aftermath of unrighteous ambition: when power is pursued through adharma, defeat brings not only external loss (army, kingdom) but also inner ruin—hopelessness and the urge to flee rather than face responsibility.
Vāyudeva describes Suyodhana’s condition after catastrophic losses in the war: his forces are slain, he is defeated and mentally broken, and he no longer sees any prospect of securing the kingdom, even wishing to retreat into the forest.