प्रवृत्तं धार्तराष्ट्रस्य चक्रं राज्ञो महात्मनः ॥
पराभूताः पाण्डुपुत्रा विपत्तिं परमां गताः ॥
अद्य देवाः संप्रयाताः समैर् वर्त्मभिर् अस्थलैः ॥
गुणज्येष्ठास् तथा ज्येष्ठा भूयांसो यद् वयं परैः ॥
नरकं पातिताः पार्था दीर्घकालम् अनन्तकम् ॥
सुखाच् च हीना राज्याच् च विनष्टाः शाश्वतीः समाः ॥
बलेन मत्ता ये ते स्म धार्तराष्ट्रान् प्रहासिषुः ॥
ते निर्जिता हृतधना वनम् एष्यन्ति पाण्डवाः ॥
pravṛttaṃ dhārtarāṣṭrasya cakraṃ rājño mahātmanaḥ ||
parābhūtāḥ pāṇḍuputrā vipattiṃ paramāṃ gatāḥ ||
adya devāḥ saṃprayātāḥ samair vartmabhir asthalaiḥ ||
guṇajyeṣṭhās tathā jyeṣṭhā bhūyāṃso yad vayaṃ paraiḥ ||
narakaṃ pātitāḥ pārthā dīrghakālam anantakam ||
sukhāc ca hīnā rājyāc ca vinaṣṭāḥ śāśvatīḥ samāḥ ||
balena mattā ye te sma dhārtarāṣṭrān prahāsiṣuḥ ||
te nirjitā hṛtadhanā vanam eṣyanti pāṇḍavāḥ ||
[Duhshasana:] 'The wheel of dominion of the king, the great-souled son of Dhritarashtra, has been set in motion; the sons of Pandu are overthrown, fallen into utter calamity. Now the gods walk toward us by smooth, level roads: we have proven superior in virtue, senior in years, and more numerous than our foes. The Parthas are cast down into hell for a long, endless time; deprived of happiness and kingdom, they are ruined for everlasting years. Those who, drunk with their own strength, laughed at the sons of Dhritarashtra — the defeated Pandavas, their wealth taken away, shall go to the forest.'
8da689344e28 · published Jul 16, 2026, 4:12:36 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The victor's pride reaches the point of blasphemy: he imagines that even the gods have taken his side, that an unjust outcome is heaven's verdict. Thus one intoxicated by success attributes his own lawlessness to the divine, mistaking mere permission for approval. His blindness is complete: he calls eternal ruin what is only a thirteen-year trial, for he measures the future by his present triumph, not knowing that the wheel he has set in motion will turn and crush him. The verse teaches that the temporary success of the wicked is not heaven's favor but a postponement of judgment; that one who gloats over the righteous man's fall does not see his own fall to come; and that ascribing one's own wrongdoing to the gods is the final stage of delusion, followed by downfall.