Shloka 116
“महाबाहो! जबतक मैं इस फँसे हुए पहियेको निकाल रहा हूँ, तबतक तुम रथारूढ़ होकर भी मुझ भूमिपर खड़े हुएको बाणोंकी मारसे व्याकुल न करो ।।
sañjaya uvāca | mahābāho! yāvatāhaṁ nimagnaṁ cakram uddharāmi tāvat tvaṁ rathārūḍho 'pi māṁ bhūmau sthitaṁ bāṇamāravyākulaṁ mā kṛthāḥ || na vāsudevāt tvatto vā pāṇḍaveya bibhemy aham | tvaṁ hi kṣatriyadāyādo mahākulavivardhanaḥ | ataḥ tvāṁ prabravīmy eṣa muhur kṣama pāṇḍava ||
Sanjaya said: “O mighty-armed one! While I am pulling out this wheel that has sunk fast, do not, though mounted on your chariot, torment me with a shower of arrows as I stand here on the ground. I fear neither Vasudeva’s son nor you, O son of Pandu. You are a kshatriya by birth, one who enhances the honor of a great lineage; therefore I speak to you thus—O Pandava, grant me a brief respite.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage foregrounds battlefield ethics and lineage-based honor: a warrior appeals to the opponent’s kshatriya identity and family prestige to request a brief, fair respite while in a disadvantaged position, implying that victory should not be sought through exploiting momentary helplessness.
In the midst of combat, a chariot wheel has become stuck. The speaker asks the Pandava warrior not to shoot while he is on the ground extracting the wheel, asserting fearlessness toward both Krishna and the Pandava, and urging the opponent to act in a manner worthy of kshatriya honor by granting a short pause.