Shloka 52
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय ५४: दुर्योधनस्य धृतराष्ट्रं प्रति बलप्रशंसन-युक्तः आश्वासनवादः
Duryodhana’s Reassurance and Force-Praise to Dhritarashtra
शक्रस्यापि व्यथां कुर्यु: संयुगे भरतर्षभ । नैतेषामर्जुन: शक्त एकैकं प्रति वीक्षितुम्,भरतश्रेष्ठ! ये चारों वीर युद्धमें देवराज इन्द्रको भी पीड़ा दे सकते हैं। अर्जुन तो इनमेंसे किसी एककी ओर भी आँख उठाकर देख नहीं सकते
śakrasyāpi vyathāṁ kuryuḥ saṁyuge bharatarṣabha | naiteṣām arjunaḥ śakta ekaikaṁ prati vīkṣitum, bharataśreṣṭha ||
દુર્યોધને કહ્યું—હે ભરતશ્રેષ્ઠ! યુદ્ધમાં આ વીરો દેવરાજ ઇન્દ્રને પણ વ્યથા આપી શકે છે. હે ભરતશ્રેષ્ઠ! અર્જુન તો એમમાંથી એકની તરફ પણ નજર ઉંચી કરીને જોઈ શકતો નથી.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how pride and strategic boasting operate before war: Duryodhana magnifies his side’s strength by comparing his warriors to Indra’s level and belittling Arjuna. Ethically, it highlights the danger of arrogance and the use of speech as a weapon to intimidate and shape perceptions, rather than a truthful assessment grounded in dharma.
In Udyoga Parva, as war becomes imminent, Duryodhana is speaking to a Kuru elder (addressed as ‘bharatarṣabha/bharataśreṣṭha’). He claims that certain warriors on his side are so formidable they could trouble even Indra in battle, and he asserts that Arjuna cannot even face any one of them—an attempt to project confidence and undermine the Pāṇḍavas’ morale.