Shloka 14
भीमस्य बल्लव-प्रतिज्ञा तथा अर्जुनस्य बृहन्नडा-रूप-निर्णयः
Bhīma’s Ballava Vow and Arjuna’s Decision to Become Bṛhannadā
वासुके: सर्पराजस्य स्वसारं हतवांश्व यः । श्रेष्ठो य: प्रतियोधानां सो<र्जुन: कि करिष्यति,जिसने खाण्डवदाहके समय वहाँ पहुँचकर एकमात्र रथका आश्रय ले इन्द्रको पराजित कर तथा नागों एवं राक्षसोंको मारकर अग्निदेवको तृप्त किया और अपने अप्रतिम सौन्दर्यसे नागराज वासुकिकी बहिन उलूपीका चित्त चुरा लिया एवं जो सम्मुख युद्ध करनेवाले वीरोंमें सबसे श्रेष्ठ है, वह अर्जुन वहाँ क्या काम करेगा?
Vāsukeḥ sarparājasya svasāraṃ hatavāṃś ca yaḥ | śreṣṭho yaḥ pratiyodhānāṃ so 'rjunaḥ kiṃ kariṣyati ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “He who won the heart of Ulūpī, sister of Vāsuki the king of serpents, and who is the foremost among warriors that meet an enemy face to face—what, then, will that Arjuna do there (in this situation)?”
युधिछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how extraordinary merit and proven valor create expectations: a hero famed for direct combat and past triumphs is presumed capable even in uncertain circumstances. It also hints at the ethical tension of the Virāṭa period—great power must sometimes remain hidden, and reputation alone cannot reveal one’s immediate role.
In Virāṭa Parva, the Pāṇḍavas are living incognito. Yudhiṣṭhira, speaking about Arjuna, recalls his famed excellence and his connection with the Nāga world (Ulūpī, sister of Vāsuki) to question what such a peerless warrior will do ‘there’—i.e., in their present concealed and constrained situation.