Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 13
Śalya Installed as Commander; Coalition Agreement and Battle Arrays (शल्यसेनापत्यारोहणं व्यूहवर्णनं च)
शल्य उवाच अद्य चाहं रणे सर्वान् पज्चालान् सह पाण्डवै:
śalya uvāca: adya cāhaṃ raṇe sarvān pāñcālān saha pāṇḍavaiḥ, iti satyaṃ bravīmy eṣa duryodhana na saṃśayaḥ.
Shalya said: “Today, in battle, I shall overcome all the Panchalas together with the Pandavas. This I declare as truth, O Duryodhana—there is no doubt.” In the ethical atmosphere of the epic, the verse highlights a warrior’s vow and confidence offered to his king, while also foreshadowing how personal pride and assurances within an unrighteous cause can intensify the momentum toward destruction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how confident vows and assurances in war can strengthen a leader’s resolve, yet in the Mahabharata’s moral frame such declarations also reveal the peril of pride and misplaced loyalty when aligned with an adharma-driven campaign.
Śalya addresses Duryodhana and promises that on that day he will defeat the Panchalas along with the Pandavas, asserting that he speaks the truth and that there is no doubt about it.