Shloka 23
Nārāyaṇāstra-utpātaḥ — Aśvatthāman’s Rallying Roar after Droṇa’s Fall (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय १६७)
कृतवर्मा तु हार्दिक्यो धर्मपुत्रं युधिष्ठिरम् । वारयामास संक्रुद्धों वेलेवोद्वृत्तमर्णवम्,जैसे उत्ताल तरंगोंवाले महासागरको तटभूमि रोक देती है, उसी प्रकार धर्मपुत्र युधिष्ठिरको अत्यन्त क्रोधमें भरे हुए हृदिकपुत्र कृतवर्माने रोक दिया
kṛtavarmā tu hārdikyo dharmaputraṁ yudhiṣṭhiram | vārayāmāsa saṅkruddho velevodvṛttam arṇavam ||
Sañjaya said: Hārdikya Kṛtavarmā, inflamed with anger, checked Dharmaputra Yudhiṣṭhira—just as a shoreline holds back the heaving ocean when its waves rise in tumult. The image proclaims restraint amid fury: even in war, force is met by a counter-force that curbs further escalation.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical idea of restraint: even when anger surges like a stormy sea, there can be a limiting boundary—symbolized by the shore—that prevents destructive overflow. In the epic’s moral landscape, controlling escalation is itself a form of order (dharma) amid chaos.
Sañjaya reports that Kṛtavarmā, furious in battle, physically or tactically blocks Yudhiṣṭhira’s advance. The action is compared to the coast holding back a turbulent ocean, emphasizing the force of the confrontation and the sudden check placed upon Yudhiṣṭhira.