Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 213

Plakṣaprasravaṇa–Kārapacana tīrtha-varṇana and Nārada’s war briefing (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 53)

Devanagari script

कुरुक्षेत्रनिबद्धां वै तां शृणुष्व हलायुध । हलायुध! स्वयं देवराज इन्द्रने कुरुक्षेत्रके सम्बन्धमें यहाँ जो गाथा गायी है, उसे आप सुनिये

Transliteration

kuru-kṣetra-nibaddhāṃ vai tāṃ śṛṇuṣva halāyudha | halāyudha! svayaṃ devarāja indreṇa kuru-kṣetre sambandham atra yā gāthā gītā, tāṃ tvaṃ śṛṇu ||

Translation

Rāma said: “O Halāyudha, listen to that ancient verse connected with Kurukṣetra. O bearer of the plough-weapon, hear the gāthā that Indra himself, king of the gods, has sung here concerning Kurukṣetra.”

Word by Word

• कुरुक्षेत्रनिबद्धाम्: bound/connected with Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रनिबद्धाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कुरुक्षेत्र-निबद्धा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• वै: indeed/forsooth
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै

• ताम्: that (her/it)
• ताम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• शृणुष्व: hear (you)!
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु
• Form: Imperative, Second, Singular, Parasmaipada

• हलायुध: O Halāyudha (Balarāma)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हलायुध
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

राम उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Rāma (Balarāma)
• Halāyudha (epithet of Balarāma)
• Indra
• Kurukṣetra

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage foregrounds the ethical authority of inherited sacred testimony: a teaching about Kurukṣetra is introduced not as mere opinion but as a revered gāthā attributed to Indra, implying that dharma is supported by tradition, divine witness, and the sanctity of place.

What is happening in the narrative?

Rāma (Balarāma), addressing Halāyudha (an epithet for Balarāma himself, used vocatively in the received wording), introduces a traditional verse connected with Kurukṣetra and asks the listener to hear it, framing the next section as an authoritative citation sung by Indra about Kurukṣetra.