Shloka 50

Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)

Devanagari script

तस्यायमागतः काल: समरस्य नराधिप । एतदर्थ मया सर्व कृतमेतद्‌ युधिष्ठिर

Transliteration

tasya ayam āgataḥ kālaḥ samarasya narādhipa | etadarthaṃ mayā sarvaṃ kṛtam etad yudhiṣṭhira ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : «Ô roi, l’heure propice de cette bataille est désormais arrivée. Ô Yudhiṣṭhira, c’est pour ce dessein même que j’ai accompli tout cela : faire porter le message que tu étais prêt aussi bien à la paix qu’à la guerre, et amener les choses à ce moment décisif.»

Word by Word

• {'tasya': 'of that (matter/war previously spoken of)', 'ayam': 'this', 'āgataḥ': 'has come, has arrived', 'kālaḥ': 'time, occasion, decisive moment', 'samarasya': 'of battle, of war', 'narādhipa': 'O ruler of men, O king', 'etad-artham': 'for this purpose, with this aim', 'mayā': 'by me', 'sarvam': 'all, entirely', 'kṛtam': 'done, carried out', 'etat': 'this (action/effort just mentioned)', 'yudhiṣṭhira': 'O Yudhiṣṭhira'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Yudhiṣṭhira

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse stresses kāla (right timing) and accountability in political-ethical action: after sincere attempts at peace, a ruler must recognize when circumstances have ripened for decisive action, and accept responsibility for the steps taken toward that end.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya addresses the king and Yudhiṣṭhira, stating that the moment for battle has arrived. He frames his prior efforts—carrying messages and arranging the situation—as aimed at bringing matters to a clear resolution, whether through peace or, if that fails, through war.