Shloka 4
Chapter 14: Divyāstra-Prayoga and Ṛṣi Intervention (दिव्यास्त्रप्रयोगः ऋषिसमागमश्च)
केशवेनैवमुक्तो5थ पाण्डव: परवीरहा । अवातरद् रथात् तूर्ण प्रगृह्ा सशरं धनु:
keśavenaitam ukto 'tha pāṇḍavaḥ paravīrahā | avatārad rathāt tūrṇaṃ pragṛhya saśaraṃ dhanuḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana sprach: So von Keśava angesprochen, stieg der Pāṇḍava — Arjuna, der Bezwinger feindlicher Helden — eilends vom Wagen herab, ergriff Bogen und Pfeile und war bereit, Kṛṣṇas Weisung inmitten der düsteren Pflichten des Krieges auszuführen.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined responsiveness to righteous guidance: Arjuna, upon Kṛṣṇa’s words, immediately prepares for necessary action. Ethically, it underscores that in a crisis of war, duty is carried out with alertness and restraint under wise counsel rather than impulse.
After Kṛṣṇa (Keśava) speaks, Arjuna—described as a destroyer of enemy champions—swiftly gets down from the chariot, bow in hand with arrows, indicating immediate readiness to proceed with the next step in the unfolding events of the Sauptika Parva.