Shloka 36
सुरोत्तमैरप्यविषद्मर्दितुं प्रसहा नागेन जहार तद् वृष: । स दुष्टभावो वितथप्रतिज्ञ: पं किक, 0 तमर्जुनस्य
surottamair apy aviṣad mardituṃ prasahā nāgena jahāra tad vṛṣaḥ | sa duṣṭabhāvo vitathapratijñaḥ paṃ kika, 0 tam arjunasya
Sañjaya said: Even the foremost of the gods could not have endured it; yet that bull among men was forcibly dragged away by the serpent. Thus, with wicked intent and vows proved false, he was borne off—an ominous turn in Arjuna’s course of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores an ethical warning: when one acts with duṣṭa-bhāva (malicious intent) and becomes vitatha-pratijña (false to one’s vows), strength and status cannot secure victory; moral failure invites reversal and loss of control.
Sañjaya describes a dramatic moment in the battle where a mighty figure—likened to a bull among men—is forcibly seized and carried off by a Nāga (serpent), and this event is framed as a troubling development connected with Arjuna’s ongoing combat.