Shloka 20
Śālva–Pradyumna Yuddha: Sārathya-kauśala, Astra-pratikāra, Daiva-niyati
Chapter 20
स चापि पापप्रकृतिर्देतियापसदो नृप । मय्यवर्षत दुर्धर्ष: शरधारा: सहस्रश:,राजन! नीच दैत्य दुर्धर्ष राजा शाल्व स्वभावसे ही पापाचारी था। उसने मेरे ऊपर सहस्रों बाणधाराएँ बरसायीं इति श्रीमहाभारते वनपर्वणि अर्जुनाभिगमनपर्वणि सौभवधोपाख्याने विंशो5थध्याय:
sa cāpi pāpaprakṛtir daityāpasado nṛpa | mayy avarṣata durdharṣaḥ śaradhārāḥ sahasraśaḥ ||
O king, that man too—sinful by nature, the very dregs among the Daityas—though hard to assail, rained upon me thousands upon thousands of streams of arrows.
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts inner character with outward power: a 'pāpa-prakṛti' (wicked disposition) manifests as indiscriminate aggression. Martial prowess (being 'durdharṣa') does not equal righteousness; ethical worth is grounded in dharma, not in the capacity to harm.
Vāsudeva describes an enemy—portrayed as vile among the Daityas—who launches an overwhelming barrage of arrows at him, emphasizing the intensity of the assault and the attacker’s hostile nature.