Shloka 26

अलायुधस्य भीमवधसंकल्पः

Alāyudha’s Resolve to Confront Bhīma

Devanagari script

मार्कण्डेय: पुराणर्षिश्नरितज्ञस्तवानघ । माहात्म्यमनुभावं च पुरा कीर्तितवान्‌ मुनि:,“निष्पाप श्रीकृष्ण! प्राचीनकालके महर्षि मार्कण्डेय आपके चरित्रको जानते हैं। उन मुनिश्रेष्ठने पहले (वनवासके समय) आपके प्रभाव और माहात्म्यका मुझसे वर्णन किया था

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | mārkaṇḍeyaḥ purāṇarṣiḥ smṛtijñaḥ tvānagha | māhātmyam anubhāvaṃ ca purā kīrtitavān muniḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O sinless one, the ancient seer Mārkaṇḍeya—versed in sacred lore and mindful of what is remembered—knows you well. Long ago that sage proclaimed to me both your majesty and your wondrous power.”

Word by Word

• {'sañjaya uvāca': 'Sañjaya said', 'mārkaṇḍeyaḥ': 'Mārkaṇḍeya (name of a revered sage)', 'purāṇa-ṛṣiḥ': 'ancient seer

• a sage of old tradition', 'smṛti-jñaḥ': 'knower of remembered tradition

• one learned in Smṛti/recited lore', 'tvā': 'you (accusative singular)', 'anagha': 'O blameless/sinless one (vocative)', 'māhātmyam': 'greatness, glory, exalted majesty', 'anubhāvam': 'manifest power, extraordinary efficacy, influence', 'purā': 'formerly, long ago', 'kīrtitavān': 'praised, proclaimed, recounted', 'muniḥ': 'sage, silent ascetic'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the ethical weight of trustworthy testimony: Kṛṣṇa’s greatness is affirmed not by mere opinion but by the authority of an ancient ṛṣi (Mārkaṇḍeya), suggesting that dharmic understanding is strengthened through reliable tradition and realized exemplars.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that the sage Mārkaṇḍeya had earlier described Kṛṣṇa’s glory and extraordinary power to him, invoking the sage’s authority to validate Kṛṣṇa’s stature within the unfolding war narrative.