Shloka 29
मुद्गलोपाख्यानम् — व्रीहिद्रोणदानं, दुर्वाससः परीक्षा, स्वर्गगुणप्रश्नः
Mudgala Episode: Rice-measure Charity, Durvāsas’ Test, Inquiry on Heaven
संजहारास्त्रमथ तत् प्रसृष्टं पाण्डवर्षभ: । दृष्टवा तु पाण्डवा: सर्वे संह्ृतास्त्रं धनंजयम्
sañjahārāstram atha tat prasṛṣṭaṃ pāṇḍavarṣabhaḥ | dṛṣṭvā tu pāṇḍavāḥ sarve saṃhṛtāstraṃ dhanaṃjayam ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: Da zog der Stier unter den Pāṇḍavas die Waffe zurück, die er bereits entsandt hatte. Als alle sahen, wie Dhanaṃjaya sich zügelte und das Geschoss zurückrief, blickten die Pāṇḍavas auf ihn — und erkannten in seiner Selbstbeherrschung jene ethische Meisterschaft, die verhindert, dass Macht zu bloßer Vernichtung wird.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power must be governed by restraint: even a rightful warrior should be able to stop a destructive force once its purpose is served, showing mastery over anger and over the instruments of violence.
Arjuna (Dhanaṃjaya), described as the foremost of the Pāṇḍavas, recalls a divine weapon he had already discharged; the other Pāṇḍavas witness this act of controlled withdrawal.