Shloka 2
Adhyāya 33: Rauhiṇeya (Balarāma) is welcomed and takes his seat to witness the gadā-engagement
यदि नाम हायं युद्धे वरयेत् त्वां युधिष्ठिर । अर्जुन नकुलं चैव सहदेवमथापि वा,'युधिष्ठिर! यदि यह दुर्योधन युद्धमें तुमको, अर्जुनको अथवा नकुल या सहदेवको ही युद्धके लिये वरण कर ले, तब क्या होगा?
yadi nāma hāyaṃ yuddhe varayet tvāṃ yudhiṣṭhira | arjuna nakulaṃ caiva sahadevam athāpi vā ||
Sañjaya sprach: „Wenn Duryodhana in dieser Schlacht dich erwählte, o Yudhiṣṭhira — oder Arjuna, oder Nakula, ja selbst Sahadeva — als den von ihm bestimmten Gegner zum Zweikampf, was würde dann folgen?“
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic and strategic dilemma: when an enemy formally selects a particular warrior for combat, the chosen person must weigh kṣatriya duty (meeting a challenge) against broader responsibility to the war’s outcome and the protection of allies.
Sañjaya poses a hypothetical to Yudhiṣṭhira: if Duryodhana, in the midst of the war, were to single out one of the Pāṇḍava brothers—Yudhiṣṭhira, Arjuna, Nakula, or Sahadeva—as his chosen opponent, what consequence or course of action would result.