Shloka 47
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 123 — Bhīṣma–Droṇa–Vidura Upadeśa to Duryodhana
Keśava-vākya aftermath
न हीमे सर्वराजान: पर्याप्ता: सहितास्त्वया
na hīme sarvarājānaḥ paryāptāḥ sahitās tvayā
Vaiśampāyana said: “Indeed, even all these kings—though united together—are not sufficient when set against you.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Collective power and alliances do not guarantee success when confronted with a superior force, strategy, or destiny; ethical and political calculations can be overturned by the exceptional strength or resolve of a single pivotal figure.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war setting, the narrator Vaiśampāyana reports a statement emphasizing that even a united assembly of kings is inadequate in comparison to the person being addressed, heightening the sense of impending war and the imbalance of power.