Chapter1- Ślokā 1
Dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ |
māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāścaiva kim akurvata sañjaya || 1 ||
(1.1)
dhṛtarāṣṭraḥ- Dhṛtarāṣṭra; uvāca- said; māmakāḥ- my sons; pāṇḍavāḥ ca eva- and the sons of Pāṇḍu; kim akurvata- what did they do; sañjaya- O Sañjaya! samavetāḥ- after assembling; dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre- in Kurukṣetra which is the land of dharma; yuyutsavaḥ- with the desire to battle with each other;
Purport
The blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the father of Duryodhana and his 99 brothers, asks Sañjaya about the happenings on the battlefield. Dhṛtarāṣṭra said, "O Sañjaya! What did my sons and the Pāṇḍavas do, after assembling on the holy land of Kurukṣetra, with the desire to battle with each other?"
dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre The great significance associated with the holy land chosen for this battle caused great concern to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. On the one hand, he feared that a truce might have taken place due to the influence of this holy land which was so closely associated with their forefathers. A truce would mean that the Pāṇḍavas would continue to be a hindrance in letting his sons be the sovereign rulers of the kingdom of Hastināpura. On the other hand, he experienced guilt about the injustice done by him and his sons towards the Pāṇḍavas and feared whether the outcome of the battle would be in their favour or not. With all this going on in Dhṛtarāṣṭra's mind, he referred to the battlefield as Dharmakṣetra, Kurukṣetra.
dharmakṣetre Since dharma prevails in this land, it is the best place for this battle to take place which
is in fact a yagña (sacrifice) .
kurukṣetre This land deserves the reverence of both Kauravas and Pāṇḍavas as it is named Kurukṣetra
after their ancestor Kuru.
yuyutsavaḥ samavetāḥ māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāścaiva In his enquiry to Sañjaya about those gathered on the battlefield, Dhṛtarāṣṭra who should have considered his younger brother Pāṇḍu's sons as his own, differentiated between them in his address as māmakāḥ(my sons) and Pāṇḍavas. This shows his special inclination and partiality towards his own sons. He wanted his sons and not the Pāṇḍavas to rule over the kingdom and always supported Duryodhana in his evil moves towards eliminating the Pāṇḍavas. As a result of this partiality alone, he was now going to witness the destruction of his own sons. It is thus clear that the visually blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra could not see with his mind's eye too.
kim akurvata Akurvata is an ātmanēpadi form of the dhātu (root verb) 'kra (to do)'. As per Sanskṛt grammar, ātmanēpadi verb form is used when the the result of the action performed is for one's own self (self serving verbs). Usage of the verb 'akurvata' here by Dhṛtarāṣṭra tells us that he wanted the advancements on the battlefield to be in favour of his own sons. He wanted confirmation that the battle was going to take place, as he feared a truce between his sons and the Pāṇḍavas, which he did not want under any circumstance.
Sañjaya Sañjaya was an extremely learned scholar well versed in the scriptures. He was impartial, righteous and truthful. Due to these exceptional qualities, he was appointed as King Dhṛtarāṣṭra's second minister by Bhīṣma while Vidura was the first. He was the son of a charioteer named Gavalgama. Sañjaya was a disciple of Sage Veda Vyāsa, the author of the epic Mahābhārata and several other scriptures. Sage Veda Vyāsa possessed a mystic ability to see and hear events occurring in distant places. He bestowed upon Sañjaya, this miraculous power of distant vision. Therefore, Sañjaya could see and hear, what transpired on the battleground of Kurukṣetra, and gave a first-hand account of the happenings to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra who was stationed in his palace.