Shloka 19

गदायुद्धप्रतिज्ञा — The Vow and Terms of the Mace Duel

Devanagari script

जलाशगयं प्रविष्टोडद्य वाउ्छड्जीवितमात्मन: । उत्तिष्ठ राजन्‌ युध्यस्व सहास्माभि: सुयोधन,'प्रजानाथ सुयोधन! तुमने किसलिये पानीमें यह अनुष्ठान आरम्भ किया है। सम्पूर्ण क्षत्रियों तथा अपने कुलका संहार कराकर आज अपनी जान बचानेकी इच्छासे तुम जलाशयमें घुसे बैठे हो। राजा सुयोधन! उठो और हम लोगोंके साथ युद्ध करो

Transliteration

jalāśayaṃ praviṣṭo ’dya vāñchad jīvitam ātmanaḥ | uttiṣṭha rājan yudhyasva sahāsmābhiḥ suyodhana ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “Today you have entered the lake, desiring to preserve your own life. After bringing about the destruction of all the kṣatriyas and of your own lineage, why have you begun this act in the water? Rise, O king Suyodhana, and fight together with us.”

Word by Word

• {'jalāśayam': 'a lake, reservoir, body of water', 'praviṣṭaḥ': 'entered, gone into', 'adya': 'today, now', 'vāñchan': 'desiring, wishing for', 'jīvitam': 'life, survival', 'ātmanaḥ': 'of oneself, one’s own', 'uttiṣṭha': 'rise up, stand up (imperative)', 'rājan': 'O king (vocative)', 'yudhyasva': 'fight! engage in battle (imperative, middle voice)', 'saha': 'together with', 'asmābhiḥ': 'with us', 'suyodhana': 'Suyodhana (Duryodhana), epithet meaning ‘one who fights well’'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Suyodhana (Duryodhana)
• jalāśaya (lake)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames a moral challenge to a kṣatriya: after causing vast destruction, seeking personal survival by hiding is portrayed as dishonorable; one must face the consequences and uphold the warrior’s duty to stand and fight.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the catastrophic losses of the war, Duryodhana (Suyodhana) has taken refuge in a lake to save himself. Sanjaya addresses him, questioning his retreat and urging him to rise and rejoin battle with his remaining supporters.