Mahabharata — Sabha Parva, Shloka 6
Jarā’s Account and the Enthronement of Jarāsandha (जरासंधोत्पत्तिः अभिषेकश्च)
ते वयं नयमास्थाय शत्र॒ुदेहसमीपगा: । कथमन्तं न गच्छेम वृक्षस्थेव नदीरया: । पररन्ध्रे पराक्रान्ता: स्वरन्ध्रावरणे स्थिता:
te vayaṁ nayam āsthāya śatrudeha-samīpagāḥ | katham antaṁ na gacchema vṛkṣastheva nadīrayāḥ | pararandhre parākrāntāḥ svarandhrāvaraṇe sthitāḥ |
Vāyu-deva dit : «Si nous, fidèles à une stratégie prudente, pouvons nous approcher jusqu’au corps même de l’ennemi, pourquoi ne pas le mener à sa fin, comme l’élan du fleuve déracine l’arbre dressé sur sa rive ? Cachant nos propres faiblesses, nous guetterons les brèches de l’adversaire ; et lorsque l’instant viendra, nous frapperons cette ouverture d’une force décisive.»
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse advocates nīti (prudent strategy): protect one’s own vulnerabilities while identifying and exploiting the opponent’s weak points, striking decisively when conditions are favorable.
Vāyu-deva speaks in a counsel-like tone, urging a tactical approach against an enemy—drawing close, concealing one’s own weaknesses, and attacking the enemy’s exposed ‘opening’ at the right moment, illustrated by the metaphor of a river’s force destroying a tree.