Shloka 27
Adhyāya 33 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Post-Conflict Remorse and Inquiry on Āśrama Discipline (शोक-विमर्शः, आश्रम-जिज्ञासा)
पार्थ! यह बात सुनी जाती है कि पूर्वकालमें देवासुर-संग्रामके अवसरपर बड़े भाई असुर और छोटे भाई देवता आपसमें लड़ गये थे। उनमें भी राजलक्ष्मीके लिये ही बत्तीस हजार वर्षोतक बड़ा भारी संग्राम हुआ था ।।
Pārtha! iyaṁ bātā śrūyate yat pūrvakāle devāsura-saṅgrāmasyāvasare bṛhad-bhrātaro 'surāḥ kṣudra-bhrātaro devāḥ parasparaṁ yuyudhire. teṣāṁ ca rāja-lakṣmyā eva dvātriṁśat-sahasra-varṣāṇi yāvat sumahān saṅgrāmo 'bhavat. ekārṇavāṁ mahīṁ kṛtvā rudhireṇa pariplutām, jaṣṇur daityāṁs tathā devās tridivaṁ cābhilebhire.
O Pārtha, it is heard that in ancient times, when war broke out between the gods and the asuras, the elder brothers—the asuras—and the younger brothers—the gods—fell into mutual battle. And for the sake of royal fortune and sovereignty alone, a tremendous war raged for thirty-two thousand years. The gods, flooding the earth with blood until it became like a single ocean, destroyed the Daityas and thereby gained possession of the heavenly world. The passage underscores how the lust for dominion can prolong conflict and drown the world in ruin, even when the victors claim a higher cause.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the pursuit of sovereignty (rāja-lakṣmī) can drive even exalted beings into prolonged, catastrophic violence; it implicitly warns that victory and ‘right’ claims do not erase the ethical cost of bloodshed and the devastation inflicted on the world.
Vyāsa recounts an ancient devas–asuras conflict: the asuras (elder brothers) and devas (younger brothers) fought for dominion for 32,000 years; the devas ultimately annihilated the Daityas, inundated the earth with blood as if it were one ocean, and secured control of heaven.