Shloka 4

Devanagari script

अन्‍्येषां क्षत्रियाणां च कृतास्त्राणामनेकश: । नानावेषाकृतिमतां नानादेशनिवासिनाम्‌,दूसरे-दूसरे देशोंमें निवास करनेवाले, भाँति-भाँतिकी वेशभूषा और आकृतिवाले जो अस्त्र-विद्यामें निपुण बहुसंख्यक क्षत्रिय वीर थे, उन्होंने भी किस प्रकार युद्ध किया था?

Transliteration

anyeṣāṁ kṣatriyāṇāṁ ca kṛtāstrāṇām anekaśaḥ | nānāvaiṣākṛtimatāṁ nānādeśanivāsinām ||

Translation

Vasudeva sprach: „Und wie kämpften auch jene anderen Kshatriya-Krieger auf vielerlei Weise – Waffenmeister, aus verschiedenen Ländern stammend und durch unterschiedliche Tracht und Gestalt gekennzeichnet?“

Word by Word

अन्येषाम्of others

क्षत्रियाणाम्of Kshatriyas/warriors

चand

कृतास्त्राणाम्of those skilled in weapons (lit. having prepared/learned weapons)

अनेकशःin many ways; in great numbers

नानाvarious; diverse

वेषdress; attire

आकृतिमताम्of those possessing forms/appearances

नानाvarious; diverse

देशcountry; region

निवासिनाम्of inhabitants/dwellers

Speaker

वसुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vasudeva

Kshatriya warriors

weapons (astra)

various regions/countries (deśa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the breadth of the Kshatriya world: many warriors, trained in arms and shaped by different regions and cultures, participate in conflict. Implicitly it frames war as a domain of Kshatriya-dharma where skill, discipline, and the realities of diverse polities converge.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vasudeva asks for an account of how numerous other weapon-trained Kshatriya heroes—coming from different lands and bearing varied attire and appearance—fought, seeking a fuller description of the battle and its participants.