Shloka 6
गदायुद्धप्रतिज्ञा — The Vow and Terms of the Mace Duel
Devanagari script
वायुदेव उवाच मायाविन इमां मायां मायया जहि भारत
Transliteration
vāyudeva uvāca māyāvin imāṁ māyāṁ māyayā jahi bhārata
Translation
Vāyudeva said: “O master of illusion, destroy this illusion with your own counter-illusion, O Bhārata.”
Word by Word
वायुदेवःVāyu-deva (the Wind-god)
वायुदेवः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootवायुदेव
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
उवाचsaid
उवाच:
TypeVerb
Rootवच्
FormPerfect (Paroksha-bhuta), Third, Singular
मायाविन्O magician / O wielder of illusion
मायाविन्:
TypeNoun
Rootमायाविन्
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
इमाम्this
इमाम्:
TypeAdjective
Rootइदम्
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
मायाम्illusion, magical art
मायाम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootमाया
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
माययाby (your) illusion / by magic
मायया:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootमाया
FormFeminine, Instrumental, Singular
जहिslay, destroy
जहि:
TypeVerb
Rootहन्
FormImperative, Second, Singular
भारतO Bhārata (descendant of Bharata)
भारत:
TypeNoun
Rootभारत
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
Speaker
वायुदेव उवाच
Characters & Entities
V
Vāyudeva (Vāyu)B
Bhārata (addressee, descendant of Bharata)M
māyā (illusion)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
The verse highlights a pragmatic ethic of conflict: deception (māyā) may be met with an appropriate countermeasure, urging discernment and strategic response rather than naïve passivity—especially when confronting harmful illusion.
Vāyudeva addresses a figure known for wielding māyā and urges him to neutralize a present deceptive force by employing his own skill—an instance of divine counsel advocating counter-strategy within the pressures of war.