Shloka 108

Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 47 — Arjuna’s Deterrent Declaration

Sañjaya’s Report

Devanagari script

ये वैजय्या: समरे सूत लब्ध्वा देवानपीन्द्रप्रमुखान्‌ समेतान्‌ । तैर्मन्यते कलहं सम्प्रसहा स धार्तराष्ट्र: पश्यत मोहमस्य,'सूत! जो पाण्डव समरभूमिमें इन्द्र आदि समस्त देवताओंको भी पाकर उन्हें पराजित किये बिना नहीं रहेंगे, उन्हीं हम पाण्डवोंके साथ यह दुर्योधन हठपूर्वक युद्ध करना चाहता है, इसका मोह तो देखो

Transliteration

ye vaijayyāḥ samare sūta labdhvā devān apīndrapramukhān sametān | tair manyate kalahaṃ samprasahā sa dhārtarāṣṭraḥ paśyata moham asya ||

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: „O Sūta, so sind jene Pāṇḍavas: Selbst wenn sie auf dem Schlachtfeld Indra und alle Götter träfen, die sich unter seiner Führung versammelt haben, würden sie nicht ruhen, ehe sie sie bezwungen hätten. Und doch besteht der Sohn Dhṛtarāṣṭras, von hartnäckigem Hochmut getrieben, darauf, gerade mit diesen Pāṇḍavas den Krieg zu erzwingen—seht die Verblendung, die ihn ergriffen hat.“

Word by Word

• {'ye': 'those who', 'vaijayyāḥ': 'possessed of victory

• invincible/conquerors (lit. ‘victorious ones’)', 'samare': 'in battle, in war', 'sūta': 'O charioteer

• here an address to Sañjaya’s interlocutor', 'labdhvā': 'having obtained/encountered, having met with', 'devān': 'the gods', 'api': 'even, even if', 'indra-pramukhān': 'with Indra as the foremost

• led by Indra', 'sametān': 'assembled, gathered together', 'taiḥ': 'by them/with them (i.e., with such opponents)', 'manyate': 'he thinks, he intends, he imagines', 'kalaham': 'quarrel, conflict, war', 'samprasahā': 'with force, violently

• obstinately/impetuously', 'saḥ': 'he', 'dhārtarāṣṭraḥ': 'the son/descendant of Dhṛtarāṣṭra (here: Duryodhana)', 'paśyata': 'behold, look!', 'mohaḥ': 'delusion, infatuation, moral blindness', 'asya': 'of him, his'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Sūta
• Pāṇḍavas
• Indra
• Devas
• Dhārtarāṣṭra (Duryodhana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how moha (delusion) and stubborn pride can drive a person to choose destructive conflict even against overwhelming odds. Ethical discernment requires recognizing reality, heeding wise counsel, and restraining ego before it turns into adharma and ruin.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya comments on Duryodhana’s reckless determination to wage war against the Pāṇḍavas. He emphasizes the Pāṇḍavas’ formidable prowess—so great that even the gods led by Indra would not deter them—then points to Duryodhana’s delusion in provoking such a conflict.