Shloka 65
भीष्मशिबिरगमनम् — Duryodhana’s Visit to Bhīṣma’s Camp and the Command Appeal
सम्बभूव महाराज समवाप च यौवनम् | माया हि सहजा तेषां वयो रूपं च कामजम्
sambabhūva mahārāja samavāpa ca yauvanam | māyā hi sahajā teṣāṃ vayo rūpaṃ ca kāmajam ||
Wahai Raja, ia baru saja menjelma namun segera mencapai masa muda; sebab bagi para rākṣasa, māyā adalah bawaan, dan usia serta rupa pun lahir menurut kehendak—terbit dari hasrat, bukan dari pertumbuhan biasa.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the Mahābhārata’s recurring contrast between ordinary human development and beings whose appearance and maturity can be produced by māyā—suggesting that outward form, age, and beauty may be constructed and therefore ethically unreliable as measures of truth or character.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the described figure quickly manifests and reaches youth, explaining that for such beings illusion is natural and that their age and beauty can arise by desire—indicating a magical or non-human mode of embodiment.