Shloka 28
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
तथा देवा ददुस्तस्मै सेनां नैऋतसंकुलाम् । देवशत्रुक्षयकरीमजय्यां विष्णुरूपिणीम्
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
tathā devā dadus tasmai senāṃ nairṛta-saṅkulām |
deva-śatru-kṣaya-karīm ajayyāṃ viṣṇu-rūpiṇīm ||
Vaiśampāyana said: In the same way, the gods granted him an army crowded with Nairṛtas—an invincible host, bearing the form and power of Viṣṇu—destined to bring about the destruction of the enemies of the gods. The passage frames divine warfare as a sanctioned act: force is bestowed not for personal gain, but to restore cosmic order by removing those who threaten the devas’ rightful stability.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and victory are portrayed as legitimate when aligned with the protection of cosmic order: the gods bestow an invincible force not for conquest as ego, but for the removal of those who endanger the devas’ rightful balance—an ethical framing of violence as duty-bound, not self-serving.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that the gods grant ‘him’ (contextually, the divinely supported commander—often identified in this episode with Kumāra/Kārttikeya in many recensions and summaries) an invincible army packed with Nairṛtas, characterized as Viṣṇu-like, specifically meant to destroy the enemies of the gods.