Shloka 12
Gadāyuddhe Kṛṣṇopadeśaḥ (Kṛṣṇa’s Counsel in the Mace-Duel) — Śalya-parva 57
यमदण्डोपमां गुर्वीमिन्द्राशनिमिवोद्यताम् । ददृशुः प्रेक्षका राजन् रौद्रीं विशसनीं गदाम्
yamadaṇḍopamāṃ gurvīm indrāśanim ivodyatām | dadṛśuḥ prekṣakā rājan raudrīṃ viśasanīṃ gadām ||
Sañjaya dijo: «¡Oh rey! Los espectadores contemplaron aquella maza poderosa: pesada y terrible como el báculo de Yama, alzada como el rayo de Indra; feroz y mortífera, capaz de despedazar al enemigo.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war magnifies human power into an impersonal force of death: the weapon is likened to Yama’s staff and Indra’s thunderbolt, reminding the listener that martial prowess, though admired, operates within a grim moral horizon where destruction is real and unavoidable.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra how spectators on the battlefield see a massive mace being lifted and brandished—so terrifying that it is compared to Yama’s staff and Indra’s vajra—signaling imminent, devastating blows in the ongoing combat.