Shloka 63

Devanagari script

युधिषछ्िर उवाच हन्त तस्मान्महाबाहो वधोपायं वदात्मन: । आचार्य प्रणिपत्यैष पृच्छामि त्वां नमो<स्तु ते,युधिष्ठिर बोले--महाबाहु आचार्य! इसलिये अब आप अपने वधका उपाय मुझे बताइये। आपको नमस्कार है। मैं आपके चरणोंमें प्रणाम करके यह प्रश्न कर रहा हूँ

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | hanta tasmān mahābāho vadhopāyaṃ vadātmanaḥ | ācārya praṇipatyaiva pṛcchāmi tvāṃ namo 'stu te ||

Translation

Dijo Yudhiṣṭhira: “Entonces, oh maestro de poderosos brazos, dime el medio por el cual podrías ser abatido. Te rindo homenaje; sólo después de inclinarme a tus pies te hago esta pregunta.”

Word by Word

• {'yudhiṣṭhira uvāca': 'Yudhiṣṭhira said', 'hanta': 'indeed

• an exclamation marking resolve', 'tasmāt': 'therefore

• from that reason', 'mahābāho': 'O mighty-armed one (honorific address)', 'vadha': 'slaying

• killing', 'upāya': 'means

• strategy', 'vadhopāyam': 'the means of slaying (compound: vadha + upāya)', 'vada': 'tell

• speak', 'ātmanaḥ': 'of yourself

• concerning yourself', 'ācārya': 'teacher

• preceptor (here, Droṇa)', 'praṇipatya': 'having bowed down

• after prostrating', 'eva': 'indeed

• emphatic particle', 'pṛcchāmi': 'I ask', 'tvām': 'you', "namo 'stu te": 'salutations be to you'}

Speaker

युधिषछ्िर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Ācārya (Droṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the tension between dharma toward one’s teacher (reverence, humility, salutation) and the harsh necessities of war. Even while seeking a lethal strategy, Yudhiṣṭhira frames the question through respectful submission, showing how ethical conduct is strained—but not abandoned—amid conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the midst of the Kurukṣetra war, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses his preceptor Droṇa with reverence and asks him to reveal the means by which he can be killed. The request is made after bowing, underscoring Droṇa’s status as guru even while he stands as an enemy commander.