Shloka 63
Devanagari script
अड्गुष्ठमात्रो भूत्वा च पुनरेव स राक्षस:
Transliteration
aṅguṣṭhamātro bhūtvā ca punareva sa rākṣasaḥ
Translation
Sañjaya sprach: Der Rākṣasa, nachdem er auf Daumengröße geschrumpft war, nahm dann wiederum seine Gestalt an.
Word by Word
अङ्गुष्ठमात्रःthumb-sized
अङ्गुष्ठमात्रः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootअङ्गुष्ठमात्र
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
भूत्वाhaving become
भूत्वा:
TypeVerb
Rootभू
Formक्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage-neutral here)
चand
च:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootच
पुनःagain
पुनः:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootपुनः
एवindeed/just
एव:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootएव
सःhe
सः:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootतद्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
राक्षसःthe demon (rākṣasa)
राक्षसः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootराक्षस
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
Speaker
संजय उवाच
Characters & Entities
S
SañjayaR
rākṣasaCharacter Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Cross References
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how deceptive power and shape-shifting can be used to gain advantage in war, raising a dharmic tension: victory pursued through illusion and stealth often signals moral danger and the erosion of straightforward kṣatriya conduct.
Sañjaya reports that a rākṣasa temporarily reduces himself to a thumb-sized form and then returns to his previous form, implying a tactical transformation—likely to evade notice, infiltrate, or strike unexpectedly.