Mahabharata 9.2.69 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 2, Shloka 69
धृतराष्ट्रविलापः — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Inquiry (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 2)
पाण्डवाश्व यथा मुक्तास्तथो भौ माधवीौ युधि । कृपश्च कृतवर्मा च भारद्वाजस्य चात्मज:
pāṇḍavāś ca yathā muktās tathobhau mādhavau yudhi | kṛpaś ca kṛtavarmā ca bhāradvājasya cātmajaḥ ||
Sinabi ni Vaiśampāyana: “Paano nakaligtas nang buhay sa larangan ng digmaan ang limang Pāṇḍava? At paano nakaligtas sa gitna ng labanan ang dalawang bayani ng Mādhava—sina Kṛṣṇa at Sātyaki? At paano rin nakalabas na buhay sina Kṛpa, Kṛtavarmā, at ang anak ni Bhāradvāja (Aśvatthāmā)?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a central ethical tension of the epic: in a war marked by massive destruction and frequent lapses into adharma, survival itself becomes a question demanding explanation—inviting reflection on the interplay of human agency (strategy, restraint, alliances) and larger forces (daiva/fate, divine protection).
Vaiśampāyana reports a query about the post-battle outcome: the listener asks by what means key figures—especially the Pāṇḍavas, Kṛṣṇa and Sātyaki, and the Kaurava-aligned survivors Kṛpa, Kṛtavarmā, and Aśvatthāmā—managed to escape alive from the battlefield.
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