Shloka 20

Devanagari script

भागिनेयान्‌ निजांस्त्यक्त्वा कृतज्ञोडस्मानुपागत: । महासेनो महाबाहुर्महासेन इवापर:,ये ऐसे कृतज्ञ हैं कि अपने सगे भानजोंको भी छोड़कर हमारे पक्षमें आ गये हैं। ये महाबाहु शल्य दूसरे महासेन (कार्तिकेय)-के समान महती सेनासे सम्पन्न हैं

Transliteration

bhāgineyān nijāṁs tyaktvā kṛtajño ’smān upāgataḥ | mahāseno mahābāhur mahāsena ivāparaḥ ||

Translation

संजय बोले— “ये ऐसे कृतज्ञ हैं कि अपने सगे भानजों को भी छोड़कर हमारे पक्ष में आ गए हैं। महाबाहु शल्य महती सेना के स्वामी हैं और दूसरे महासेन (कार्तिकेय) के समान पराक्रमी हैं।”

Word by Word

भागिनेयान्sister's sons, nephews

निजान्one's own

त्यक्त्वाhaving abandoned

कृतज्ञःgrateful

अस्मान्us

उपागतःhaving come, arrived (to)

महासेनःMahāsena (name/title; also 'having a great army')

महाबाहुःmighty-armed

महासेनःMahāsena (Kārttikeya/Skanda)

इवlike, as

अपरःanother, a second

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Śalya

Bhāgineyāḥ (Śalya’s sister’s sons)

Mahāsena (Kārttikeya/Skanda)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds kṛtajñatā (gratitude/remembering a benefit) as a powerful ethical motive that can override even close kinship ties; it also shows how warriors are praised through divine comparison to strengthen morale and legitimacy.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes Śalya’s alignment with the Kauravas: despite having close family connections on the opposing side (his sister’s sons), Śalya comes to ‘our’ camp out of gratitude, and is portrayed as a formidable commander, likened to Mahāsena (Kārttikeya).