Shloka 9
Vāg-yuddha and Nimitta-darśana before the Gadāyuddha
Verbal Duel and Omens
तस्मात् समन्तपञ्चकमितो याम द्रुतं नूप । प्रथितोत्तरवेदी सा देवलोके प्रजापते:
sañjaya uvāca | tasmāt samantapañcakam ito yāma drutaṃ nṛpa | prathitottaravedī sā devaloke prajāpateḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: „Darum, o König, lasst uns von hier eilends nach Samantapañcaka gehen. Jener Boden ist in der Welt der Götter als Prajāpatis ‘uttaravedī’, der ‘nördliche Altar’, berühmt. In diesem höchst heiligen und ewigen Pilgerfeld der drei Welten ist der Mann, der im Kampf den Tod findet, gewiss dem Himmel bestimmt.“
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links sacred place (tīrtha) and righteous warrior-death: dying in battle at a supremely holy field is portrayed as yielding assured heavenly attainment, reflecting the epic’s kṣatriya ideal and the belief in place-based merit.
Sañjaya addresses the king and urges swift movement to the sacred region called Samantapañcaka, identifying it with Prajāpati’s famed ‘northern altar’ in devaloka and emphasizing its extraordinary sanctity and salvific promise for those who fall there in battle.