Shloka 36
कर्णेन युधिष्ठिरानीकविदारणम् / Karṇa’s Breach of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Battle-Line
यो यज्ञे विहित: पूर्वमीशानस्य महात्मन: । संवत्सरो धनुस्तद् वै सावित्री ज्या महास्वना
yo yajñe vihitaḥ pūrvam īśānasya mahātmanaḥ | saṃvatsaro dhanus tad vai sāvitrī jyā mahāsvanā ||
Dijo Duryodhana: «Aquello que fue forjado antaño en el rito sacrificial del magnánimo Īśāna (Śiva): el propio año (saṃvatsara) se volvió su arco, y Sāvitrī se volvió la cuerda, resonante con un poderoso tañido». En estas palabras, el arma se presenta como nacida del orden sagrado, otorgando sanción divina y sobrecogimiento al poder marcial que se invoca.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents martial power as rooted in sacred and cosmic structures: time itself (the year) becomes a weapon, and the sacred Sāvitrī becomes its string. It suggests that force, when portrayed as arising from yajña and divine order, gains an aura of legitimacy and inevitability—an ethical reminder of how religious symbolism can be used to authorize worldly power.
Duryodhana is describing (and glorifying) a divine bow associated with Īśāna/Śiva, recounting its mythic origin in a sacrifice. By emphasizing its sacred construction and thunderous bowstring, he heightens the sense of supernatural might surrounding the weapons and the impending combat.