Shloka 22
(बलिनो हि वयं राजन् देवैरपि सुदुर्जया: । कथं भृत्यत्वमापन्ना विराटनगरे समर ।।) “राजन्! हम बलवान हैं, देवताओंके लिये भी हमें परास्त करना कठिन होगा तो भी विराटनगरमें हमें कैसे दासता करनी पड़ी थी, इसे याद कीजिये ।। यच्च ते द्रोणभीष्माभ्यां युद्धमासीदरिंदम । मनसैकेन योद्धव्यं तत्ते युद्धमुपस्थितम्,'शत्रुदमन नरेश! द्रोणाचार्य और भीष्मके साथ जो आपका युद्ध हुआ था, वैसा ही दूसरा युद्ध आपके सामने उपस्थित है, इस समय आपको एकमात्र अपने मनके साथ युद्ध करना है
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
balino hi vayaṃ rājan devair api sudurjayāḥ |
kathaṃ bhṛtyatvam āpannā virāṭanagare sma ra ||
yac ca te droṇabhīṣmābhyāṃ yuddham āsīd arindama |
manasaikena yoddhavyaṃ tat te yuddham upasthitam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O King, we are strong—hard to conquer even for the gods. Yet remember how we were forced into servitude in the city of Virāṭa. And, O subduer of foes, the battle you once faced against Droṇa and Bhīṣma—an equivalent battle now stands before you: at this moment you must fight with your mind alone.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
True victory can require an inner battle: even the strong must sometimes conquer their own mind—fear, anger, pride, or despair—before they can act rightly. The verse reframes ‘war’ as self-mastery and mental discipline.
Vaiśampāyana recalls a humiliating episode—servitude in Virāṭa’s city—despite great strength, to urge the king to remember past endurance. He then compares an earlier external war against Droṇa and Bhīṣma to a present, more subtle struggle: a decisive confrontation with one’s own mind.