Shloka 36
Samrāt-Lakṣaṇa and the Counsel to Check Jarāsandha (सम्राट्-लक्षणं जरासन्ध-प्रतिबाधा-परामर्शः)
अनारभन्तो निष्नन्तो महास्त्रै: शत्रुधातिभि: । न हन्यामो वयं तस्य त्रिभिरवर्षशतैर्बलम्
anārabhanto niṣṇanto mahāstraiḥ śatrudhātibhiḥ | na hanyāmo vayaṃ tasya tribhir avarṣaśatair balam ||
Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: “Even if we were to keep striking without pause, employing mighty weapons that destroy the enemy, we still would not be able to annihilate his army—even in three hundred years. Such is the magnitude of that force.”
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Kṛṣṇa emphasizes strategic realism: sheer violence and even the most powerful weapons may be insufficient against overwhelming strength; wise action requires assessing capacity, time, and consequences rather than relying on brute force.
Kṛṣṇa is advising about the immense scale of an opposing force, stating that even continuous assault with great, enemy-destroying weapons would not finish that army within three hundred years—highlighting the need for a different approach than direct attrition.