Shloka 25
Virāṭa’s Mobilization to Recover the Cattle (गोधनरक्षणार्थ विराटस्य सैन्यसमायोजनम्)
वैशग्पायन उवाच ते सम गत्वा यथोद्दिष्टां दिशं वल्लेमहीपते । संनद्धा रथिन: सर्वे सपदाता बलोत्कटा:
Vaiśampāyana uvāca—te samaṃ gatvā yathoddiṣṭāṃ diśaṃ vallabha-māhīpate | saṃnaddhā rathinaḥ sarve sa-padātā balotkaṭāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O beloved king, they proceeded together in the direction that had been previously assigned. All of them—chariot-warriors along with their foot-soldiers—were fully armed and arrayed, formidable in strength and fierce in prowess.”
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined coordination and preparedness in collective action—strength becomes effective when organized under a plan, a recurring ethical-political theme in the epic’s portrayal of kingship and warfare.
The narrator describes a force moving in a prearranged direction, fully armed—chariot fighters with infantry—setting the stage for the coming raid/engagement in the Virāṭa episode.