Shloka 20
Adhyāya 160: Arjuna’s Envoy-Message—Critique of Borrowed Valor and Pre-dawn Mobilization
कि दर्दुरः कूपशयो यथेमां न बुध्यसे राजचमूं समेताम् । दुराधर्षा देवचमूप्रकाशां गुप्तां नरेन्द्रैस्त्रिदशैरिव द्याम्ू
kiṁ darduraḥ kūpaśayo yathemāṁ na budhyase rājacamūṁ sametām | durādharṣā devacamūprakāśāṁ guptāṁ narendrais tridāśair iva dyām ||
Ulūka sprach: „Warum begreifst du, wie ein Frosch am Grund eines Brunnens, dieses versammelte königliche Heer nicht? Es ist schwer anzugreifen, strahlend wie das Heer der Götter, und von Königen bewacht — wie der Himmel von den Dreiunddreißig gehütet wird.“
उलूक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses the 'frog in a well' image to criticize narrow perception and overconfidence born of limited experience; it urges a realistic appraisal of power and circumstances, warning that ignorance of the wider world leads to poor judgment in conflict.
Ulūka taunts his opponent by praising the assembled royal host as nearly invincible, comparing its protection by kings to heaven being guarded by the Thirty-three gods, thereby attempting to intimidate and assert the Kaurava side’s strength.