Shloka 3
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Inquiry and Sañjaya’s Etymologies of Kṛṣṇa’s Names
Puruṣottama-nāma-nirvacana
विद्यया तात जानामि त्रियुगं मधुसूदनम् । कर्तारमकृतं देवं भूतानां प्रभवाप्ययम्
vidyayā tāta jānāmi triyugaṁ madhusūdanam | kartāram akṛtaṁ devaṁ bhūtānāṁ prabhavāpyayam ||
तात! मैं ज्ञानदृष्टि से त्रियुगस्वरूप भगवान मधुसूदन को जानता हूँ—जो सबके कर्ता हैं, पर स्वयं अकृत हैं; और जो समस्त भूतों की उत्पत्ति तथा लय के कारण हैं।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse affirms a theological insight: Krishna (Madhusudana) is the uncreated divine agent who stands as the ultimate source and end of all beings. True knowledge recognizes the Lord as creator without being a created product, grounding dharma in a cosmic, moral order beyond human politics.
Sanjaya, speaking to his listener (addressed as “tāta”), declares his recognition of Krishna’s divine nature. In the tense pre-war setting of the Udyoga Parva, this frames Krishna not merely as a diplomat but as the cosmic Lord whose presence shapes the ethical stakes of the coming conflict.