Shloka 19
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय 54: फल्गुन-प्रतिरोधः, सौबली-व्यूह-विध्वंसः, दुर्योधन-भीष्म-संवादः
नालमेष क्षयं कर्तु परसैन्यस्य मारिष । आर्जवेनैव युद्धेन वीर वर्षशतैरपि,“माननीय वीर श्रीकृष्ण! यदि इस तरह सरलतापूर्वक ही युद्ध किया जाय तो यह भीमसेन अकेला सौ वर्षोमें भी शत्रु-सेनाका विनाश नहीं कर सकता
na alam eṣa kṣayaṃ kartuṃ parasainyasya māriṣa | ārjavenaiva yuddhena vīra varṣaśatair api ||
Sanjaya said: “O venerable one, this warrior is not capable of bringing about the destruction of the enemy host—if the fighting is conducted only with straightforward, scrupulous fairness. Even over a hundred years, such plain dealing in war would not suffice to annihilate the opposing army.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts idealized, strictly straightforward combat (ārjava) with the harsh realities of large-scale war: mere honest fighting may be insufficient to end a conflict decisively, implying the need for strategy beyond simple rectitude while still negotiating dharma.
Sanjaya comments on the practical impossibility of destroying the opposing host if the battle is fought only in a simple, direct manner; he emphasizes that even a very long time would not be enough under such constraints.