धृतराष्ट्र उवाच
संप्रमृद्य महत् सैन्यं यान्तं शैनेयम् अर्जुनम् ॥
निर्ह्रीका मम ते पुत्राः किम् अकुर्वत संजय ॥
कथं चैषां तथा युद्धे धृतिर् आसीन् मुमूर्षताम् ॥
शैनेयचरितं दृष्ट्वा सदृशं सव्यसाचिनः ॥
किं नु वक्ष्यन्ति ते क्षात्रं सैन्यमध्ये पराजिताः ॥
कथं च सात्यकिर् युद्धे व्यतिक्रान्तो महायशाः ॥
कथं च मम पुत्राणां जीवतां तत्र संजय ॥
शैनेयो ऽभिययौ युद्धे तन् ममाचक्ष्व तत्त्वतः ॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
saṃpramṛdya mahat sainyaṃ yāntaṃ śaineyam arjunam ||
nirhrīkā mama te putrāḥ kim akurvata saṃjaya ||
kathaṃ caiṣāṃ tathā yuddhe dhṛtir āsīn mumūrṣatām ||
śaineyacaritaṃ dṛṣṭvā sadṛśaṃ savyasācinaḥ ||
kiṃ nu vakṣyanti te kṣātraṃ sainyamadhye parājitāḥ ||
kathaṃ ca sātyakir yuddhe vyatikrānto mahāyaśāḥ ||
kathaṃ ca mama putrāṇāṃ jīvatāṃ tatra saṃjaya ||
śaineyo 'bhiyayau yuddhe tan mamācakṣva tattvataḥ ||
"Trampling the great army, seeing Shaineya going toward Arjuna, what did those shameless sons of mine do, Sanjaya? And how did they keep their steadfastness in battle, doomed as they were, seeing Shaineya's deed like that of Savyasachin? What indeed will they say, in kshatriya fashion, defeated amid the army? And how did Satyaki, greatly renowned, break through in battle?"
84ca9fddab3b · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:08:02 PM UTC
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The blind king calls his sons "nirhrīkāḥ", shameless, and "mumūrṣatām", doomed: a father's shame foresees their fate. It is telling that he asks not about victory but about disgrace. The verse teaches that untruth breeds not only defeat but shame: one who takes up arms for the unrighteous reaps dishonor in the hour of rout, and even a father, loving his sons, cannot help but call them disgraced.