Shloka 5
तेषां च पार्थस्य च मारिषासीद् देहासुपापक्षपणं सुयुद्धम् । त्रैलोक्यहेतोरसुरैर्यथा55सीद् देवस्य विष्णोर्जयतां वरस्य
teṣāṁ ca pārthasya ca māriṣāsīd dehāsu-pāpa-kṣapaṇaṁ su-yuddham | trailokya-hetor asurair yathāsīd devasya viṣṇor jayatāṁ varasya ||
Sañjaya dijo: Entonces surgió, oh venerable, una batalla feroz y noble entre aquellos guerreros y Pārtha (Arjuna): un combate que destruía cuerpos y vidas y obraba como expiación de pecados. Fue como la guerra que antaño libró el dios Viṣṇu, el mejor entre los victoriosos, contra los Asuras por la soberanía de los tres mundos.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames righteous warfare as both a kṣatriya obligation and a moral reckoning: the battle is portrayed as 'pāpa-kṣapaṇa' (sin-destroying/expiatory), and Arjuna’s struggle is elevated by comparison to Viṣṇu’s cosmic fight to uphold order across the three worlds.
Sañjaya reports that a dreadful, decisive clash begins between Arjuna and the opposing warriors. The intensity is likened to Viṣṇu’s ancient conflict with the Asuras for dominion over the three worlds, emphasizing the scale and gravity of the encounter.