Shloka 108
Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
जानामि ते वासुदेव॑ सहायं जानामि ते गाण्डिवं तालमात्रम् | जानाम्यहं त्वादृशो नास्ति योद्धा जानानस्ते राज्यमेतद्धरामि,“मैं जानता हूँ कि तुम्हारे सहायक वसुदेवनन्दन श्रीकृष्ण हैं, मैं यह भी जानता हूँ कि तुम्हारे पास चार हाथ लंबा गाण्डीव धनुष है तथा मुझे यह भी मालूम है कि तुम्हारे-जैसा दूसरा कोई योद्धा नहीं है; यह सब जानकर भी मैं तुम्हारे इस राज्यका अपहरण करता हूँ
sañjaya uvāca |
janāmi te vāsudevaṁ sahāyaṁ janāmi te gāṇḍīvaṁ tālamātram |
janāmy ahaṁ tvādṛśo nāsti yoddhā jānānas te rājyam etad dharāmi ||
Sañjaya dijo: «Sé que Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa) es tu aliado; sé también de tu arco Gāṇḍīva, de un tāla de longitud; y sé que no hay guerrero igual a ti. Y aun sabiéndolo todo, arrebato de ti este reino.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights deliberate wrongdoing: even with full awareness of the opponent’s strength and righteousness-support (Kṛṣṇa as ally), the speaker admits to usurping the kingdom. It underscores how greed and power can override knowledge, conscience, and dharma—making the act ethically culpable precisely because it is done knowingly.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war context, Sañjaya reports a blunt confession: despite recognizing Arjuna’s unmatched prowess, his divine ally Kṛṣṇa, and the famed Gāṇḍīva bow, the speaker still proceeds to take the kingdom. The statement intensifies the moral tension leading into the Kurukṣetra war by framing the conflict as a conscious act of usurpation.