Shloka 30
Kṛpa’s Archery Display; Śikhaṇḍin Checked; Suketu Slain; Dhṛṣṭadyumna–Kṛtavarmā Clash (कृपशौर्य–पार्षतहार्दिक्ययुद्धम्)
व्याप्र॑ त्वं मन्यसे55त्मानं यावत् कृष्णौ न पश्यसि । समास्थितावेकरयथे सूर्याचन्द्रमसाविव,“एक रथपर बैठे हुए सूर्य और चन्द्रमाके समान सुशोभित श्रीकृष्ण और अर्जुनको जबतक तुम नहीं देख रहे हो, तभीतक अपनेको बाघ माने बैठे हो
vyāpram tvaṁ manyase ’tmānaṁ yāvat kṛṣṇau na paśyasi | samāsthitāv eka-rathē sūryā-candramasāv iva ||
Sañjaya said: “So long as you do not behold Kṛṣṇa and (Arjuna) the son of Kṛṣṇā together, you imagine yourself to be a tiger. But when you see them—standing firm upon a single chariot, resplendent like the sun and the moon—you will understand the true measure of your strength.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Self-assessment must be grounded in reality: pride thrives in ignorance of true opposition. The verse highlights that courage without discernment becomes arrogance, and that the presence of dharmic, divinely guided strength (Kṛṣṇa with Arjuna) overturns inflated self-confidence.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra how a warrior’s bravado lasts only until he actually sees Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna together on a single chariot, shining like the sun and moon—an image meant to convey their combined, overwhelming power and resolve in battle.