पतंगा इव वह्निं ते प्राविशन्न् अल्पचेतसः ॥
ये भीमसेनं संक्रुद्धम् अभ्यधावन् विमोहिताः ॥
यत् तत् सभायां भीमेन मम पुत्रवधाश्रयम् ॥
शप्तं संरम्भिणोग्रेण कुरूणां शृण्वतां तदा ॥
तन् नूनम् अभिसंचिन्त्य दृष्ट्वा कर्णं च निर्जितम् ॥
दुःशासनः सह भ्रात्रा भयाद् भीमाद् उपारमत् ॥
pataṃgā iva vahniṃ te prāviśann alpacetasaḥ ||
ye bhīmasenaṃ saṃkruddham abhyadhāvan vimohitāḥ ||
yat tat sabhāyāṃ bhīmena mama putravadhāśrayam ||
śaptaṃ saṃrambhiṇogreṇa kurūṇāṃ śṛṇvatāṃ tadā ||
tan nūnam abhisaṃcintya dṛṣṭvā karṇaṃ ca nirjitam ||
duḥśāsanaḥ saha bhrātrā bhayād bhīmād upāramat ||
"Like moths into fire, the feeble-minded entered -- those who, deluded, rushed at the enraged Bhimasena. That oath, which in the assembly, by Bhima, enraged and fierce, was sworn concerning the slaying of my sons, while the Kurus listened then -- pondering it, surely, and seeing Karna defeated, Duhshasana, together with his brother, withdrew from fear of Bhima."
35e05cf15d4d · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:17:34 PM UTC
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The terrible oath, sworn in the assembly, is now fulfilled before their eyes -- and Duhshasana, remembering it, withdraws in fear. It is notable that the oath was uttered in response to the outrage against Draupadi: injustice itself begot the vow that now punishes it. The verse teaches that a word born of another's cruelty does not vanish; the wrongdoer carries within himself his own sentence, and dreads its execution when the hour arrives.