Mahabharata — Udyoga Parva, Shloka 6
Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
आहृक्योपद्वरे राजन्नुलूकमिदमब्रवीत् । राजेन्द्र! भरतनन्दन! नरश्रेष्ठ! दुर्योधनने कर्ण
sañjaya uvāca |
āhṛkyo'padvare rājann ulūkam idam abravīt |
rājendra bharatanandana naraśreṣṭha duryodhanaḥ karṇaṃ bhrātaraṃ duḥśāsanaṃ tathā subalaputraṃ śakuniṃ ca sambhāṣya mantrayitvā ulūkam ekānte āhūya tam evaṃ uvāca |
ulūka gaccha kaitavya pāṇḍavān sahasomakān |
pāṇḍavānāṃ kurūṇāṃ ca yuddhaṃ lokabhayaṅkaram ||
Wahai Raja, di ambang balairung, Ulūka mengucapkan kata-kata ini. Lalu Duryodhana—raja agung, kebanggaan Bharata, insan termulia—setelah berunding dengan Karṇa, saudaranya Duḥśāsana, dan Śakuni putra Subala, memanggil Ulūka secara rahasia dan berkata: “Ulūka, si licik, pergilah segera kepada para Pāṇḍava bersama kaum Somaka. Nyatakan kepada mereka bahwa perang antara Pāṇḍava dan Kuru—yang telah lama dipikirkan bertahun-tahun—kini telah mendekat, suatu pertikaian yang menggentarkan seluruh dunia.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war is consciously escalated through private counsel and provocative messaging. Ethically, it underscores the danger of deceitful diplomacy and pride-driven decisions that make a conflict ‘fearsome to the world,’ affecting far more than the immediate rivals.
Duryodhana, after consulting Karna, Duhshasana, and Shakuni, privately instructs Uluka to go as an envoy to the Pandavas (with the Somakas) and deliver a message announcing that the long-anticipated Kuru–Pandava war is now imminent and will be dreadful for the world.