Mahabharata — Virata Parva, Shloka 28
Adhyāya 55: Pārtha–Rādheya Saṃvāda and Tactical Exchange
Chapter 55
नूनं पार्थजयैषित्वाच्छक्र: सर्वामरै: सह | हन्त्यस्मानित्यमन्यन्त पार्थेन निहता: परे
nūnaṃ pārthajayaiṣitvāc chakraḥ sarvāmaraiḥ saha | hanty asmān ity amanyanta pārthena nihatāḥ pare ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Frappés à mort par Pārtha (Arjuna), les guerriers adverses s’imaginaient : « Assurément Śakra (Indra), avec tous les dieux, nous massacre » ; tant la prouesse d’Arjuna, avide de victoire, leur paraissait écrasante. Le passage montre comment une excellence guerrière hors du commun, lorsqu’elle sert une cause juste, est ressentie comme une puissance presque divine.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Exceptional prowess in a dharmic struggle can appear ‘divine’ to onlookers; the verse highlights how human excellence, when rightly directed, inspires awe and is interpreted as the working of higher powers.
After being struck down by Arjuna’s arrows, the enemy soldiers believe that Indra himself, accompanied by the gods, must be killing them—such is the terror and magnificence of Arjuna’s onslaught.