Shloka 25
Adhyāya 108 — Nimitta-darśana and Drona’s counsel amid Arjuna’s advance (निमित्तदर्शनं द्रोणोपदेशश्च)
ततो दुर्योधनो दीनो दृष्टवा सैन्यं पराजितम्
tato duryodhano dīno dṛṣṭvā sainyaṁ parājitam
Тогда Дурьодхана, подавленный и унылый, увидев разгром своего войска, был охвачен мрачным осознанием последствий собственных решений в войне — там, где гордыня и адхарма приносят лишь страдание и утрату.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and psychological fallout of unrighteous ambition: when one pursues power through adharma, the inevitable reversals of war bring not only strategic loss but inner collapse—dīnatā (despondency) born of facing the results of one’s own actions.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana becomes dejected after witnessing his forces being defeated. It marks a turning point in mood: confidence gives way to anxiety and sorrow as the battlefield reality turns against the Kauravas.