धृतराष्ट्र उवाच
न रोचये ज्ञातिवधं द्रष्टुं ब्रह्मर्षिसत्तम ॥
युद्धम् एतत् त्व् अशेषेण शृणुयां तव तेजसा ॥
वैशंपायन उवाच
तस्मिन्न् अनिच्छति द्रष्टुं संग्रामं श्रोतुम् इच्छति ॥
वराणाम् ईश्वरो दाता संजयाय वरं ददौ ॥
व्यास उवाच
एष ते संजयो राजन् युद्धम् एतद् वदिष्यति ॥
एतस्य सर्वं संग्रामे नपरोक्षं भविष्यति ॥
चक्षुषा संजयो राजन् दिव्येनैष समन्वितः ॥
कथयिष्यति ते युद्धं सर्वज्ञश् च भविष्यति ॥
प्रकाशं वा रहस्यं वा रात्रौ वा यदि वा दिवा ॥
मनसा चिन्तितम् अपि सर्वं वेत्स्यति संजयः ॥
नैनं शस्त्राणि भेत्स्यन्ति नैनं बाधिष्यते श्रमः ॥
गावल्गणिर् अयं जीवन् युद्धाद् अस्माद् विमोक्ष्यते ॥
अहं च कीर्तिम् एतेषां कुरूणां भरतर्षभ ॥
पाण्डवानां च सर्वेषां प्रथयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥
दिष्टम् एतत् पुरा चैव नात्र शोचितुम् अर्हसि ॥
न चैव शक्यं संयन्तुं यतो धर्मस् ततो जयः ॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
na rocaye jñātivadhaṃ draṣṭuṃ brahmarṣisattama ||
yuddham etat tv aśeṣeṇa śṛṇuyāṃ tava tejasā ||
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
tasminn anicchati draṣṭuṃ saṃgrāmaṃ śrotum icchati ||
varāṇām īśvaro dātā saṃjayāya varaṃ dadau ||
vyāsa uvāca
eṣa te saṃjayo rājan yuddham etad vadiṣyati ||
etasya sarvaṃ saṃgrāme naparokṣaṃ bhaviṣyati ||
cakṣuṣā saṃjayo rājan divyenaiṣa samanvitaḥ ||
kathayiṣyati te yuddhaṃ sarvajñaś ca bhaviṣyati ||
prakāśaṃ vā rahasyaṃ vā rātrau vā yadi vā divā ||
manasā cintitam api sarvaṃ vetsyati saṃjayaḥ ||
nainaṃ śastrāṇi bhetsyanti nainaṃ bādhiṣyate śramaḥ ||
gāvalgaṇir ayaṃ jīvan yuddhād asmād vimokṣyate ||
ahaṃ ca kīrtim eteṣāṃ kurūṇāṃ bharatarṣabha ||
pāṇḍavānāṃ ca sarveṣāṃ prathayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ ||
diṣṭam etat purā caiva nātra śocitum arhasi ||
na caiva śakyaṃ saṃyantuṃ yato dharmas tato jayaḥ ||
Dhritarashtra said: 'O best of brahmarishis, I do not wish to see the killing of kinsmen. But by your spiritual power I would like to hear of this battle in full.' Vaishampayana said: 'When he did not wish to see the battle but wished to hear of it, the lord and giver of boons gave a boon to Sanjaya.' Vyasa said: 'O king, this Sanjaya will tell you of the battle. Nothing in the fight will be hidden from him. O king, endowed with divine sight, Sanjaya will relate the war to you and will become all-knowing. The open or the hidden, by night or by day, even what is merely thought in the mind — all this Sanjaya will know. Weapons will not pierce him, weariness will not overcome him; this son of Gavalgana will come out of this war alive. And I, O best of the Bharatas, shall spread the fame of all these Kurus and Pandavas. Do not grieve: this was ordained long ago. It is not for you to grieve over this, and it cannot be stopped: where dharma is, there is victory.'
e5ae75be3ab8 · published Jul 17, 2026, 8:37:17 PM UTC
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Dhritarashtra refuses to see the killing of kinsmen, yet still wants to know of it. This is a telling duality: he is not ready to face the truth directly, but he cannot turn away from it either. The boon given to Sanjaya creates a special witness to the war: the account will be neither rumor nor guesswork but a vision granted by the grace of Vyasa.