Shloka 28

Devanagari script

सुधर्मा चानिरुद्धश्न श्रुतायुश्न महाबल: । अनूपराजो दुर्धर्ष: क्रमजिच्च सुदर्शन:

Transliteration

sudharmā cāniruddhaś ca śrutāyuś ca mahābalaḥ | anūparājo durdharṣaḥ kramajic ca sudarśanaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “There were also Sudharmā and Aniruddha; Śrutāyu, a man of great strength; Anūparāja, hard to assail; Kramajit; and Sudarśana.”

Word by Word

सुधर्माSudharmā (proper name)

चand

अनिरुद्धःAniruddha (proper name)

श्रुतायुःŚrutāyu (proper name)

चand

महाबलःmighty/very strong

अनूपराजःAnūparāja (proper name)

दुर्धर्षःhard to assail/irresistible

क्रमजित्Kramajit (proper name; 'step-conqueror')

चand

सुदर्शनःSudarsana (proper name; 'good-looking/beautiful to see')

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Sudharmā

Aniruddha

Śrutāyu

Anūparāja

Kramajit

Sudarśana

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse primarily serves a narrative function—cataloguing notable figures—yet it implicitly highlights the Mahābhārata’s ethical-political world where fame, strength, and the capacity to protect or challenge order are socially significant qualities of rulers and warriors.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana continues an enumeration of prominent persons (likely kings/warriors) connected with the events surrounding the royal assembly setting in the Sabha Parva, identifying them by name and occasionally by a defining epithet such as ‘greatly strong’ or ‘hard to assail.’