Shloka 20
इस प्रकार अच्छे घोड़ोंसे जुते हुए सुवर्णमालामण्डित तीस हजार रथ भी उस समय इनका अनुसरण करते थे ।।
enaṃ aṣṭaśatāḥ sūtāḥ sumṛṣṭa-maṇi-kuṇḍalāḥ | abruvan māgadhaiḥ sārdhaṃ purā śakram ivarṣayaḥ ||
Arjuna dit : «De même que les sages d’autrefois louèrent Indra, ainsi huit cents bardes—les Sūtas avec les Māgadhas—parés de boucles d’oreilles semblables à des gemmes, finement polies, chantaient à haute voix les vertus de ce héros tandis qu’il avançait, entouré de la splendeur et de la suite de la puissance royale.»
अर्जुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how public acclaim and royal pageantry are constructed through skilled praise-singers (Sūtas and Māgadhas). Ethically, it suggests that fame and authority are reinforced by social recognition, and it invites discernment between genuine virtue and the outward machinery of glorification.
Arjuna describes a grand royal procession: eight hundred professional bards, adorned with polished jewel-like earrings, accompany and loudly proclaim the hero’s qualities—likened to the way ancient sages praised Indra (Śakra).