Shloka 16

उलूकदूतवाक्यम् / Ulūka’s Message to the Pāṇḍavas

Devanagari script

स भोजराज: सैन्येन महता परिवारित:

Transliteration

sa bhojarājaḥ sainyena mahatā parivāritaḥ

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : Ce roi des Bhoja, entouré et escorté par une grande armée, s’avança dans une démonstration de puissance royale—image qui souligne combien, dans cet épisode, l’autorité politique est indissociable de la force militaire et des tensions morales d’un conflit imminent.

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• भोजराजः: the king of the Bhojas
• भोजराजः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भोजराज
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सैन्येन: by/with an army
• सैन्येन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सैन्य
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• महतā: great, large
• महतā: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत्
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• परिवारितः: surrounded, attended
• परिवारितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परि + वृत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bhojarāja (Bhoja king)
• sainya (army)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line highlights a Mahābhārata motif: royal authority is publicly manifested through military backing. Ethically, it foreshadows how political decisions in the Udyoga Parva are pressured by force and preparedness for war, raising questions of dharma in governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a Bhoja king moving about (or being present) while surrounded by a large army, indicating a formal royal entourage and a tense, militarized setting typical of the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war mobilization.