Shloka 27
Śaṅkha–Likhita Upākhyāna: Daṇḍa, Confession, and the Purification of Kingship (शङ्ख-लिखितोपाख्यानम्)
धनुर्यूपो रशना ज्या शर: खुक् स्रुवः खड्गो रुधिरं यत्र चाज्यम् । रथो वेदी कामगो युद्धमग्नि- श्वातुर्होत्रं चतुरो वाजिमुख्या:
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
dhanur yūpo raśanā jyā śaraḥ śuk sruvaḥ khaḍgo rudhiraṃ yatra cājyam |
ratho vedī kāmago yuddham agniś cāturhotraṃ caturo vājimukhyāḥ ||
Busurnya menjadi tiang kurban; ikat pinggangnya menjadi tali busur; anak panahnya laksana sendok persembahan, dan pedangnya menjalankan tugas sendok besar. Di sana, darah sendiri menggantikan ghee. Keretanya yang melaju sekehendaknya adalah altar; pertempuran adalah api; dan empat kuda utamanya bagaikan empat imam utama dalam ritus cāturhotra. Demikianlah raja Hayagrīva yang lincah, bak singa, mempersembahkan musuh-musuhnya ke dalam api ‘kurban’ itu, dan akhirnya mempersembahkan pula napas hidupnya sendiri; ia pun terbebas dari dosa. Menyelesaikan perang seakan-akan mandi penutup avabhṛtha, kini ia bersukacita di alam para dewa.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames righteous battle (undertaken as kṣatriya-duty) through the imagery of a Vedic sacrifice: instruments of war become ritual implements, and the warrior’s final self-offering is likened to the sacrifice’s completion and purification. It emphasizes intention, duty, and the idea that disciplined action can be interpreted within a sacred-ethical order.
Vaiśampāyana describes a warrior-king (Hayagrīva) whose combat is poetically presented as a yajña: bow as yūpa, chariot as altar, battle as fire, and horses as priests. By ‘offering’ enemies and ultimately his own life, he is said to attain purification and joy in Devaloka, as if he had completed the concluding avabhṛtha bath of a sacrifice.