Duryodhana-śibira-praveśaḥ — The Pāṇḍavas Enter the Kaurava Camp; The Burning of Arjuna’s Chariot
तथैवायं गदापाणिर्धातिराष्ट्री गतक्लम: । न शकक््यो धर्मतो हन्तुं कालेनापीह दण्डिना
tathaivāyaṃ gadāpāṇir dhārtarāṣṭrī gataklamaḥ | na śakyo dharmato hantuṃ kālenāpīha daṇḍinā ||
قال سَنْجَيا: «ومع ذلك فإن ابنَ دِهْرِتَرَاشْتْرَ هذا، حاملَ الهِراوة، غيرَ المُتَعَبِ من القتال، لم يكن ليُقتَل هنا بأي وسيلةٍ موافقةٍ للدَّرْمَا—ولا حتى على يد الزمان نفسه، حاملِ العقاب.»
संजय उवाच
The verse contrasts dharma with sheer power: even a formidable warrior may appear ‘unassailable’ within the bounds of righteous combat, suggesting that outcomes in war are constrained by ethical codes and also ultimately governed by Kāla (Time/Death), which transcends human calculation.
Sañjaya describes Duryodhana on the battlefield as tireless and extraordinarily hard to defeat. He emphasizes that, within the rules of dharma-yuddha, slaying him seems impossible—hyperbolically stating that even Kāla, the cosmic punisher, could not kill him by ‘righteous’ means in that moment.