Shloka 39
Daśame’hani Bhīṣma-yuddham — Śikhaṇḍī-rakṣaṇa, Arjuna-prabhāva, Duryodhana-āśraya-vākyam
द्रवद्धिस्तैर्महानागै: समन्ताद भरतर्षभ । दुर्योधनबलं सर्व पुनरासीत् पराड्मुखम्,भरतश्रेष्ठी] सब ओर भागते हुए उन महान् गजराजोंके साथ ही दुर्योधनकी सारी सेना युद्धभूमिसे विमुख हो चली
dravadbhis tair mahānāgaiḥ samantād bharatarṣabha | duryodhana-balaṃ sarvaṃ punar āsīt parāṅmukham ||
Sañjaya thưa: “Hỡi bậc tráng sĩ trong dòng Bharata, khi những voi chiến hùng mạnh ấy tháo chạy tứ phía, toàn bộ quân lực của Duryodhana lại một lần nữa quay lưng khỏi chiến địa, mất cả thể diện lẫn ý chí.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how quickly an army’s dhairya (steadfastness) can collapse when key supports—here, the war-elephants—panic and flee. In the ethical frame of kṣatriya-dharma, turning parāṅmukha (away from battle) signals a loss of resolve and leadership control, showing that victory depends not only on strength but on disciplined morale.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that as the great elephants ran off in disorder on all sides, Duryodhana’s entire force again became parāṅmukha—turning away from the fight and effectively retreating from the battlefield.