Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 8
Duryodhana-patana-anuśocana
The Fall of Duryodhana and the Contest of Restraint
सो<यं प्रतिज्ञां तां चापि पालयत्वरिकर्षण: । मायाविन तु राजानं माययैव निकृन्ततु
so ’yaṁ pratijñāṁ tāṁ cāpi pālayatv arikarṣaṇaḥ | māyāvin tu rājānaṁ māyayāiva nikṛntatu ||
Vāyu said: “Let this foe-subduing hero indeed keep that very vow. But as for the king who fights by deception, let him be cut down by deception alone.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts two ethical registers in warfare: a righteous warrior should uphold his pledged word (pratijñā), while a deceitful opponent (māyāvin) is to be countered on his own terms—deception answered with deception—suggesting proportional response and protection of dharma through appropriate means.
Vāyu delivers counsel about conduct in the conflict: he urges the ‘enemy-subduer’ to keep his vow, and simultaneously recommends that a king characterized as deceitful be brought down using the same kind of stratagem, indicating tactical guidance within the war setting of Śalya Parva.
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