Shloka 5
धृतराष्ट्रस्य संजयप्रश्नः
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Inquiry to Saṃjaya on Strategic Comparisons
द्रौणिंच सोमदत्तं च शकुनिं चापि सौबलम् | दुःशासनं शलं चैव पुरुमित्रं विविंशतिम्
drauṇiṃ ca somadattaṃ ca śakuniṃ cāpi saubalam | duḥśāsanaṃ śalaṃ caiva purumitraṃ viviṃśatim ||
द्रौणिं च सोमदत्तं च शकुनिं चापि सौबलम् । दुःशासनं शलं चैव पुरुमित्रं विविंशतिम् ॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse functions as a pointed enumeration within a diplomatic message: even formal courtesies are now directed toward named agents of adharma and war, highlighting the ethical tension between outward protocol and the inner certainty of impending violence.
Sanjaya, as narrator and envoy-voice, lists key Kaurava-aligned figures to whom greetings and the intended communication should be conveyed; it is part of the pre-war court exchange in which negotiations harden into preparations for battle.