Shloka 21

मārkaṇḍeya-ukta yuddha-vyūha-pratyavyūhaḥ

Battle Formations and Countermeasures in the Rāmopākhyāna

Devanagari script

यथा वाहं नातिचरे कथंचित्‌ पतीन्‌ महाहान्‌ मनसापि जातु | तेनाद्य सत्येन वशीकृतं त्वां द्रष्टास्मि पार्थ: परिकृष्पममाणम्‌,यदि मैंने कभी मनसे भी अपने परम पूजनीय पतियोंका किसी तरह उल्लंघन नहीं किया हो तो आज इस सत्यके प्रभावसे मैं देखूँगी कि पाण्डव तुझे जीतकर अपने वशमें करके जमीनपर घसीट रहे हैं

Transliteration

yathā vāhaṁ nāticare kathaṁcit patīn mahābhāgān manasāpi jātu | tenādya satyena vaśīkṛtaṁ tvāṁ draṣṭāsmi pārthaḥ parikṛṣyamāṇam ||

Translation

Jayadratha said: “If I have never, in any way—nor even in my mind—transgressed my greatly fortunate and venerable husbands, then by the power of that truth today I shall behold you: the son of Pṛthā (a Pāṇḍava) having subdued you, dragging you along under his control.”

Word by Word

• {'yathā': 'if, in the event that', 'vā': 'indeed/for emphasis (particle)', 'aham (vāham)': 'I', 'na': 'not', 'aticare (√car, ati-√car)': 'I overstep, transgress', 'kathaṁcit': 'in any manner, by any means', 'patīn': 'husbands, lords (acc. pl.)', 'mahābhāgān (mahā-bhāga)': 'highly fortunate, noble, venerable', 'manasā api': 'even by the mind

• even mentally', 'jātu': 'ever, at any time', 'tena': 'by that (instrumental), by means of that', 'adya': 'today, now', 'satyena': 'by truth

• by a truth-act (satyakriyā)', 'vaśīkṛtam (vaśī-√kṛ)': 'brought under control, subdued', 'tvām': 'you', 'draṣṭāsmi': 'I shall see', 'pārthaḥ': 'son of Pṛthā

• a Pāṇḍava (esp. Arjuna, but can denote a Pāṇḍava generally)', 'parikṛṣyamāṇam (pari-√kṛṣ, passive)': 'being dragged around, being dragged along'}

Speaker

जयद्रथ उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Jayadratha
• Pārtha (a Pāṇḍava; son of Pṛthā)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse invokes satyakriyā—the idea that unwavering moral integrity (here, fidelity and non-transgression even in thought) can be asserted as a truth-act whose force is expected to bring about a just outcome. It highlights the ethical weight given to inner intention (manasā api) as part of dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Jayadratha makes a conditional vow: if he has never violated his husbands in deed or even in thought, then by that truth he will witness a Pāṇḍava (Pārtha) subduing and dragging the addressed person, implying imminent defeat and humiliation of the opponent.