संजय उवाच
स्रंसन्त इव मज्जानस् तावकानां भयान् नृप ॥
तौ दृष्ट्वा समतिक्रान्तौ वासुदेवधनंजयौ ॥
सर्वे तु प्रतिसंरब्धा ह्रीमन्तः सत्त्वचोदिताः ॥
स्थिरीबूता महात्मानः प्रत्यगच्छन् धनंजयम् ॥
saṃjaya uvāca
sraṃsanta iva majjānas tāvakānāṃ bhayān nṛpa ||
tau dṛṣṭvā samatikrāntau vāsudevadhanaṃjayau ||
sarve tu pratisaṃrabdhā hrīmantaḥ sattvacoditāḥ ||
sthirībūtā mahātmānaḥ pratyagacchan dhanaṃjayam ||
As if the marrow of your men were melting away from fear, O king, when they saw those two, Vasudeva and Dhananjaya, having passed through the ranks — yet all of them, having rallied their strength, conscience-bound, driven by their own nature, having steadied themselves, great of soul, went back again against Dhananjaya.
4bb8cb97a9b7 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:52:56 PM UTC
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Their fear is so great that "sraṃsantaḥ iva majjānaḥ", as if the bone marrow were melting. And yet "hrīmantaḥ sattvacoditāḥ", conscience-bound, moved by their own nature, they go again into battle. It is telling that shame and innate nature ("sattva") raise them to overcome fear. The verse teaches that valor can be born from shame and fidelity to one's own nature: the conscience-bound overcomes terror so as not to disgrace himself; and though their cause is unjust, the very effort of one ashamed to retreat is worthy — for "hrī", shame, is the guardian of valor.