Shloka 4
Śikhaṇḍin’s Transformation, Daśārṇa Verification, and Kubera’s Conditional Curse
Udyoga Parva 193
मासेनेति च तेनोक्तो धार्तराष्ट्र: सुदुर्मति: । तावता चापि कालेन द्रोणो5पि प्रतिजज्ञिवान्,भीष्मजीने धृतराष्ट्रके पुत्र दुर्बुद्धि दुर्योधनको यह उत्तर दिया कि मैं एक महीनेमें पाण्डव-सेनाका विनाश कर सकता हूँ। द्रोणाचार्यने भी उतने ही समयमें वैसा करनेकी प्रतिज्ञा की। कृपाचार्यने दो महीनेका समय बताया। यह बात हमारे सुननेमें आयी है तथा महान् अस्त्रवेत्ता अश्वत्थामाने दस ही दिनोंमें पाण्डव-सेनाके संहारकी प्रतिज्ञा की है
māseneti ca tenokto dhārtarāṣṭraḥ sudurmatiḥ | tāvatā cāpi kālena droṇo 'pi pratijajñivān |
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “Thus was that ill-minded son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra heard to declare, ‘In a month I can bring about the destruction of the Pāṇḍava host.’ And within that same span of time Droṇa too made a vow to accomplish it.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical danger of prideful, time-bound vows of mass destruction in war. It implicitly contrasts such exterminatory intent with dharma, which demands restraint, right intention, and viewing battle as a grievous necessity rather than a boastful project.
Yudhiṣṭhira reports what he has heard: Duryodhana claimed he could destroy the Pāṇḍava army within a month, and Droṇa likewise pledged to do so in the same time. The statement frames the escalating martial commitments of the Kaurava side.