Shloka 79
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणरथारोহণं सात्यकेः प्रतिरक्षणं च | Dhrishtadyumna Boards Droṇa’s Chariot; Sātyaki’s Counter-Protection
यद्येवमहमज्ञास्यमशक्तान् रक्षणे मम । पुत्रस्य पाण्डुपञ्चालान् मया गुप्तो भवेत् तत:,“यदि मैं ऐसा जानता कि पाण्डव और पांचाल मेरे पुत्रकी रक्षा करनेमें असमर्थ हैं तो मैं स्वयं उसकी रक्षा करता
yadyevamaham ajñāsyam aśaktān rakṣaṇe mama | putrasya pāṇḍupañcālān mayā gupto bhavet tataḥ ||
यद्येवमहमज्ञास्यमशक्तान् रक्षणे मम। पुत्रस्य पाण्डुपञ्चालान् मया गुप्तो भवेत् ततः॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights accountability in leadership and kinship: when entrusted protectors prove unable, the moral burden returns to the one most responsible, who must not evade the duty of safeguarding those under his care.
Sañjaya reports a speaker’s retrospective realization: if he had known that the Pāṇḍavas and Pāñcālas could not protect his son, he would have personally arranged or ensured the son’s protection from that point onward.