Shloka 51

Devanagari script

अयुध्येतां महात्मानौ यथोभौ वृत्रवासवौ । अन्योन्यं तु महाराज परस्परवधैषिणौ,महाराज! वे दोनों महाबली महामना वीर बाणोंसे उद्दीप्त हो एक-दूसरेको मार डालनेकी इच्छासे समीप आकर वृत्रासुर और इन्द्रके समान युद्ध करने लगे

Transliteration

ayudhyetāṁ mahātmānau yathobhau vṛtrāvāsavau | anyonyaṁ tu mahārāja parasparavadhaiṣiṇau ||

Translation

قال سانجيا: «أيها الملك العظيم، إن هذين البطلين ذوي النفس السامية اقتتلا كفِرِترا وفاسافا (إندرا)—تدانيا أحدهما من الآخر بنية القتل، وكلٌّ منهما يبتغي موت صاحبه».

Word by Word

अयुध्येताम्they two fought

महात्मानौthe two great-souled ones

यथाas, like

उभौboth (of them)

वृत्रवासवौVṛtra and Vāsava (Indra)

अन्योन्यम्mutually, each other

तुbut, indeed

महाराजO great king

परस्परवधैषिणौdesiring each other's death

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Vṛtra

Indra (Vāsava)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the tragic intensity of kṣatriya warfare: even ‘great-souled’ warriors can become mutually death-seeking when bound by battle-duty and rivalry, highlighting how dharma in war can coexist with destructive intent.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that two principal warriors have closed in and are fighting fiercely, compared to the mythic clash of Indra and Vṛtra, emphasizing a duel of near-cosmic ferocity.