Shloka 376
Duryodhana-śibira-praveśaḥ — The Pāṇḍavas Enter the Kaurava Camp; The Burning of Arjuna’s Chariot
ऋजुना प्रतियुध्येथा न ते स्थाद् विजयो ध्रुवम् | “यदि मेरे, कर्णके तथा भीष्म और द्रोणाचार्यके साथ मायारहित सरलभावसे तुम युद्ध करते तो निश्चय ही तुम्हारे पक्षकी विजय नहीं होती
ṛjunā pratiyudhyethā na te sthād vijayo dhruvam
संजय बोले—यदि तुम सरलता से, बिना किसी छल-प्रपंच के, सीधा युद्ध करते, तो तुम्हारी विजय निश्चय ही सुनिश्चित न होती। यदि तुम मेरे, कर्ण, भीष्म और द्रोणाचार्य के साथ मायारहित भाव से युद्ध करते, तो तुम्हारे पक्ष की जीत ध्रुव न होती।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical dilemma of warfare: strict, transparent combat (ṛju-bhāva) is idealized, yet victory in the Mahābhārata often depends on strategy and deception (māyā). It suggests that moral purity in method may not guarantee success, raising questions about how dharma operates under extreme conflict.
Sañjaya, narrating events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, comments on the nature of the fighting and implies that without tactical devices the outcome would not have been decisively favorable for the addressed side. The remark frames the war as not merely a contest of strength but of methods, counsel, and calculated moves.