Shloka 38
Book 9 (Śalya-parva), Adhyāya 13 — Arjuna’s Arrow-storm and the Drauṇi Confrontation
कथं नु समरे शक््यं तन््माधववचो महत् | न हि क्रुद्धो रणे राजा क्षपयेत बल॑ मम,“इस युद्धस्थलमें भगवान् श्रीकृष्णकी कही हुई वह महत्त्वपूर्ण बात कैसे सिद्ध हो सकेगी? कहीं ऐसा न हो कि रणभूमिमें कुपित हुए महाराज शल्य मेरी सारी सेनाका संहार कर डालें
sañjaya uvāca | kathaṁ nu samare śakyaṁ tan-mādhava-vaco mahat | na hi kruddho raṇe rājā kṣapayet balaṁ mama |
Dijo Sañjaya: «¿Cómo, en medio de la batalla, podrá cumplirse aquella gran declaración pronunciada por Mādhava (Śrī Kṛṣṇa)? Pues si el rey Śalya, airado en el campo de guerra, golpea sin freno, podría aniquilar toda mi fuerza.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between a trusted, ‘great’ assurance (Kṛṣṇa’s words) and the unpredictable force of human anger in war. It frames ethical concern: when rulers fight in wrath, restraint collapses and destruction becomes indiscriminate, threatening any intended plan or promised outcome.
Sañjaya voices apprehension about the course of the battle: he wonders how Kṛṣṇa’s significant statement will prove true if Śalya becomes furious in combat, since an enraged Śalya could devastate ‘our’ forces. The line functions as a worried forecast amid shifting battlefield leadership and morale.