Shloka 9
आरतायनि: समरे दुष्प्रकम्प्यः सेनाग्रणी: प्रथमस्तावकानाम् | यः स्वस्त्रीयान् पाण्डवेयान् विसृज्य सत्यां वाचं स्वां चिकीर्षुस्तरस्वी,जिन्हें युद्धमोें विचलित करना अत्यन्त कठिन है, जो आपके सैनिकोंके प्रथम सेनापति एवं वेगशाली वीर हैं, जो अपनी बात सच्ची कर दिखानेके लिये अपने सगे भानजे पाण्डवोंको छोड़कर तथा अजातशत्रु युधिष्ठिरके सामने युद्धस्थलमें सूतपुत्र कर्णके तेज और उत्साहको नष्ट करनेकी प्रतिज्ञा करके आपके पक्षमें चले आये थे, वे बलवान दुर्धर्ष तथा इन्द्रके समान पराक्रमी ऋतायनपुत्र शल्य आपके लिये युद्ध करनेको तैयार हैं
Ārtāyaniḥ samare duṣprakampyaḥ senāgraṇīḥ prathamas tāvakānām | yaḥ svastrīyān pāṇḍaveyān visṛjya satyāṁ vācaṁ svāṁ cikīrṣus tarasvī |
Sañjaya said: “Ārtāyani (Śalya), hard to shake in battle, the foremost commander among your forces—he, the swift and powerful warrior who, wishing to make his own word come true, abandoned his sister’s sons, the Pāṇḍavas, and came over to your side—stands ready to fight for you.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between kinship and pledged duty: Śalya is portrayed as choosing to uphold his own spoken commitment (satya-vākya) even when it requires separating from close relatives, illustrating how vows and personal honor can redirect allegiance in war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Śalya—renowned as unshakable in battle—has become the leading commander on the Kaurava side, having left the Pāṇḍavas (his sister’s sons) in order to fulfill his own promise and now stands ready to fight.