Shloka 52

भीष्म-युधिष्ठिर-संमर्दः

Bhīṣma’s Pressure on Yudhiṣṭhira; Śikhaṇḍī’s Approach; Evening Withdrawal

Devanagari script

दुष्कर्ण व्यथितं दृष्टया पठच राजन्‌ महारथा:

Transliteration

duṣkarṇaṃ vyathitaṃ dṛṣṭvā pāṇḍavaḥ rājan mahārathāḥ

Translation

Sañjaya thưa: “Tâu Đại vương, thấy Duṣkarṇa đau đớn khốn quẫn, các đại xa chiến binh trong phe Pāṇḍava (cùng đồng minh) liền ứng biến theo tình thế.”

Word by Word

• दुष्कर्णम्: Dushkarna (proper name)
• दुष्कर्णम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुष्कर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• व्यथितम्: distressed, afflicted
• व्यथितम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्यथ्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund)

• पठ: recite, read
• Type: Verb
• Root: पठ्
• Form: Imperative, 2nd, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• महारथाः: great chariot-warriors
• महारथाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महारथ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• राजन् / धृतराष्ट्र (Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• दुष्कर्ण (Duṣkarṇa)
• महāratha (mahāratha-class warriors)
• पाण्डव (Pāṇḍavas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a recurring Mahābhārata insight: in war, actions and their visible effects (fear, pain, distress) immediately shape further action. It implicitly points to the ethical weight of violence—suffering is not abstract but witnessed, and it drives decisions on the field.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duṣkarṇa is seen in a distressed state, and the great chariot-warriors—identified with the Pāṇḍava side in this line—respond in the ongoing Kurukṣetra battle sequence.