Shloka 8

Devanagari script

हतप्रवीरा विध्वस्ता निकृत्ता निशितै: शरै: । सूतपुत्रे हते राजन पुत्रास्ते दुद्रुवुर्भयात्‌,राजन! सूतपुत्रके मारे जानेपर पैने बाणोंसे क्षत-विक्षत एवं पराजित हुए आपके पुत्र भयके मारे भागने लगे। उनके प्रमुख वीर रणभूमिमें मारे जा चुके थे

Transliteration

hatapravīrā vidhvastā nikṛttā niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ | sūtaputre hate rājan putrās te dudruvur bhayāt ||

Translation

三阇耶说道：大王啊，当车夫之子（苏多之子）被杀之后，你的诸子——早已失去首要勇士，又被锐箭割裂摧残而败——因恐惧而奔逃。

Word by Word

हतप्रवीराःwhose chief heroes were slain

विध्वस्ताःshattered, routed

निकृत्ताःcut down, mangled

निशितैःwith sharp

शरैःarrows

सूतपुत्रेwhen/while the charioteer’s son (Karna) (was the context)

हतेbeing slain

राजन्O king

पुत्राःsons

तेthose/your (they)

दुद्रुवुःran away, fled

भयात्from fear

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Karṇa (Sūtaputra)

Kauravas (Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons)

arrows (śara)

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 how the fall of a central leader can collapse collective morale: when courage depends mainly on a single champion, fear spreads quickly after his defeat. Ethically, it underscores the fragility of adharmic confidence in war—power without inner steadiness and righteous grounding turns into panic when circumstances reverse.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that after Karṇa (called ‘Sūtaputra’) is killed, the Kaurava princes—already devastated by sharp arrows and deprived of their leading warriors—lose heart and flee the battlefield in fear.