Shloka 8
अर्जुन–उलूपीसंवादः
Arjuna and Ulūpī: Explanation of Śānti and the Maṇipūra Resolution
इत्युक्त: प्रत्युवाचैनं प्रहसन्निव पाण्डव: । विघ्नकर्ता मया वार्य इति मे व्रतमाहितम्
ity uktaḥ pratyuvācainaṃ prahasann iva pāṇḍavaḥ | vighnakartā mayā vārya iti me vratam āhitam ||
Así interpelado, el Pāṇḍava (Arjuna) le respondió como con una sonrisa: «A quien pretenda estorbar mi camino debo contenerlo; tal es el voto que me ha sido impuesto. Por eso, hiéreme según tu fuerza: en mi corazón no hay ira contra ti».
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A warrior’s action can be ethically grounded when it is performed as a vowed duty rather than from personal anger: Arjuna frames resistance to obstruction as an enjoined vrata, emphasizing restraint, clarity of purpose, and absence of malice.
In the Ashvamedha campaign setting, Arjuna is challenged or confronted; he responds calmly—almost smiling—that his vow requires him to stop anyone who blocks his path, and he invites the other party to strike according to their strength while declaring he bears no personal resentment.