Shloka 2
मārkaṇḍeya-ukta yuddha-vyūha-pratyavyūhaḥ
Battle Formations and Countermeasures in the Rāmopākhyāna
यशस्विनस्तीक्षणविषान् महारथा- नभिन्रुवन् मूढ न लज्जसे कथम् | महेन्द्रकल्पान् निरतान् स्वकर्मसु स्थितान् समूहेष्वपि यक्षरक्षसाम्,“अरे मूढ़! मेरे पति पाण्डव महान् यशस्वी, सदा अपने धर्मके पालनमें स्थित, यक्षों तथा राक्षसोंके समूहमें भी युद्ध करनेमें समर्थ, देवराज इन्द्रके सदृश शक्तिशाली तथा महारथी वीर हैं। उनका क्रोध तीक्ष्ण विषवाले नागोंके समान भयंकर है। उनके सम्मानके विरुद्ध ऐसी ओछी बातें कहते हुए तुझे लज्जा कैसे नहीं आती?
yāśasvinas tīkṣṇa-viṣān mahārathān abhinruvan mūḍha na lajjasē katham | mahendra-kalpān niratān svakarmasu sthitān samūheṣv api yakṣa-rakṣasām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O fool! How can you feel no shame while uttering such contempt against those illustrious, great chariot-warriors? They are like Mahendra in might, steadfast in their own duty, and able to stand firm even amid hosts of Yakṣas and Rākṣasas. Their wrath is as dreadful as serpents charged with deadly venom; how can you speak such petty words against their honor without blushing?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse upholds dharma in speech and conduct: reviling the honorable—especially those steadfast in their duty—is ethically disgraceful. It warns that insulting righteous, powerful persons is both morally wrong (lack of lajja) and practically dangerous (their wrath is likened to deadly venom).
In the Vana Parva context of the Pāṇḍavas’ forest life and encounters with supernatural beings, the speaker rebukes someone who has spoken slightingly of the Pāṇḍavas. The rebuke emphasizes their fame, Indra-like strength, unwavering commitment to duty, and capacity to face even Yakṣas and Rākṣasas in battle.