Shloka 18

Devanagari script

तस्याज्ञां शिरसा योधा: परिगृहा[ विशाम्पते | विवर्णवदना राजन्‌ न्‍्यविशन्त महारथा:,प्रजानाथ! वे सब महारथी योद्धा दुर्योधनकी आज्ञा शिरोधार्य करके शिबिरमें प्रविष्ट हुए। उन सबके मुखोंकी कान्ति फीकी पड़ गयी थी

Transliteration

tasyājñāṃ śirasā yodhāḥ parigṛhya viśāṃpate | vivarṇavadanā rājan nyaviśanta mahārathāḥ ||

Translation

சஞ்சயன் கூறினான்—ஓ மக்கள்தலைவா! அவர்கள் அவன் ஆணையைத் தலைமேல் ஏற்றுக் கொண்டனர். அரசே, அந்த மகாரதர்கள் நிறம் குன்றிய முகங்களுடன் பாளையத்திற்குள் நுழைந்தனர்.

Word by Word

तस्यof him (Duryodhana)

आज्ञाम्command, order

शिरसाwith (their) head; on the head (as a mark of acceptance)

योधाःwarriors

परिगृह्यhaving accepted / having taken up (i.e., having complied with)

विशाम्पतेO lord of the people

विवर्ण-वदनाःhaving pale faces

राजन्O king

न्यविशन्तentered

महारथाःgreat chariot-warriors

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Duryodhana

the mahārathas (great chariot-warriors)

the camp (śibira, implied by narrative context)

the King addressed (Dhṛtarāṣṭra, implied by Sañjaya’s address)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights disciplined obedience to a leader’s command (“taking it upon the head”) while also revealing the moral and emotional cost of war: even mighty heroes show pallor and apprehension, suggesting that power and rank do not erase inner conscience, fear, or the weight of impending outcomes.

What is happening in the narrative?

After receiving Duryodhana’s order, the assembled great warriors accept it respectfully and proceed into the camp. Their faces have lost their color, indicating distress, shock, or ominous anticipation as the war situation intensifies.