Shloka 20

Traigarta Attempt to Seize the Aśvamedha Horse; Arjuna’s Restraint and Tactical Victory

Devanagari script

पाण्डवै: पृथिवीम श्वो निर्जितामस्त्रतेजसा । चचार स महाराज यथादेशं च सत्तम,महाराज! साधुशिरोमणे! पाण्डवोंने अपने अस्त्रके प्रतापसे जिस पृथ्वीको जीता था, उसके सभी देशोंमें वह अश्व क्रमश: विचरण करने लगा

Transliteration

pāṇḍavaiḥ pṛthivīm aśvo nirjitām astratejasā | cacāra sa mahārāja yathādeśaṃ ca sattama ||

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana sprach: „O bester der Könige, da zog das Opferross, wie es angewiesen worden war, durch alle Gegenden der Erde, die die Pāṇḍavas durch Glanz und Gewalt ihrer Waffen erobert hatten.“

Word by Word

पाण्डवैःby the Pandavas

पृथिवीम्the earth

श्वःtomorrow / on the next day

निर्जिताम्conquered

अस्त्रतेजसाby the power/energy of weapons

चचारwandered / roamed

सःhe / that (one)

महाराजःthe great king

यथाas / according to

आदेशम्the command / instruction

चand

सत्तमO best of the good (O excellent one)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

Pāṇḍavas

Aśvamedha horse

Pṛthivī (the earth/realm)

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 frames political power within ritual and order: conquest achieved through martial prowess is now stabilized and legitimized through the Aśvamedha, where the horse’s sanctioned wandering symbolizes acknowledged sovereignty and the transition from war to regulated rule.

What is happening in the narrative?

During the Aśvamedha, the consecrated horse is released to wander. It moves through the lands previously subdued by the Pāṇḍavas, following the prescribed course, thereby testing and publicly affirming their imperial authority.