Shloka 213
न शक्या युधि निर्जेतुं त्ववन्येन परंतप । “उग्रस्वभाव, भीषण पराक्रमी एवं भयंकर कर्म करनेवाले तुषार, यवन, खश, दार्वाभिसार, दरद, शक, माठर, तंगण, आन्ध्र, पुलिन्द, किरात, म्लेच्छ, पर्वतीय तथा समुद्रतटवर्ती योद्धा, जो युद्धकुशल, रोषावेशसे युक्त, बलवान् एवं हाथोंमें डंडे लिये हुए हैं, क्रोधमें भरकर कौरव-सैनिकोंके साथ दुर्योधनकी सहायताके लिये आये हैं; शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले वीर! तुम्हारे सिवा दूसरा कोई इन्हें नहीं जीत सकता
sañjaya uvāca |
na śakyā yudhi nirjetuṃ tvad-anyena paraṃtapa |
ugrasvabhāvā bhīṣaṇa-parākramā bhayaṅkara-karma-kṛtaś ca tuṣārā yavanāḥ khaśā dārvābhisārā daradāḥ śakā māṭharā taṅgaṇā āndhrāḥ pulindāḥ kirātā mlecchāḥ parvatīyāḥ samudra-taṭa-vartinaś ca yodhāḥ |
yuddha-kuśalā roṣāveśa-yuktā balavanto daṇḍa-hastāḥ kruddhāḥ kaurava-sainikaiḥ saha duryodhanasya sahāyārthaṃ samāgatāḥ |
śatrūn saṃtāpayanta vīra tvām ṛte ’nyo na śaknoti jetum ||
Sanjaya said: “O scorcher of foes, these warriors cannot be conquered in battle by anyone other than you. Fierce by nature, terrible in prowess, and given to dreadful deeds—Tusharas, Yavanas, Khashas, Darvabhisaras, Daradas, Shakas, Matharas, Tanganas, Andhras, Pulindas, Kiratas, and other Mleccha fighters—mountain-dwellers and men of the seacoast—skilled in war, seized by rage, strong, and bearing clubs in their hands, have come in wrath with the Kaurava troops to aid Duryodhana. O hero who torments enemies, apart from you there is no one who can defeat them.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage underscores a war-time ethic of realistic appraisal: strength, training, and morale (here, rage and cohesion) determine outcomes, and leadership is measured by the capacity to face concentrated, formidable forces. It also reflects the epic’s habit of classifying diverse frontier peoples as ‘mleccha’ while still acknowledging their martial competence.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that numerous fierce, non-Kuru allied fighters—named by their peoples and regions—have joined the Kaurava side to support Duryodhana. He emphasizes that these enraged, club-bearing, battle-skilled warriors are so formidable that only the addressed hero (the ‘paraṃtapa’) is capable of defeating them in battle.