Shloka 4
Rājagṛhe Magadheśvarasya yuddhāhvānam — Arjunena saṃyamaḥ
The Rājagṛha Challenge and Arjuna’s Restraint
ततोड<र्चितो ययौ राजंस्तदा स तुरगोत्तम: । काशीनगान् कोसलांश्व किरातानथ तड़णान्,राजन्! शरभसे पूजित हो वह उत्तम अश्व काशी, कोसल, किरात और तड़ण आदि जनपदोंमें गया
tato 'rcito yayau rājan tadā sa turagottamaḥ | kāśīn agān kośalāṃś ca kirātān atha taṅgaṇān ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Then, having been duly honored, that finest of horses set out, O King. It went on to the lands of Kāśī and Kośala, and then to the Kirātas and the Taṅgaṇas.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Legitimate rule is affirmed through dharmic recognition—honor, hospitality, and consent—rather than mere force; the Aśvamedha horse’s respected passage symbolizes orderly sovereignty grounded in ritual and social acknowledgment.
After being properly received, the sacrificial horse continues its prescribed roaming, moving through Kāśī, Kośala, and onward to regions associated with the Kirātas and Taṅgaṇas, marking the spread and acknowledgment of the sacrificer’s authority.