Shloka 16
Sātyaki’s Call for Intervention and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Vow-Bound Restraint (सात्यकिवाक्यं—धर्मराजस्य धैर्यनिश्चयः)
द्रोणं च भीष्मं च महारथौ तौ सुतैर्वृत॑ चाप्पथ सोमदत्तम् । सर्वाणि सैन्यानि च वासुदेव: प्रधक्ष्यते सायकवल्लिजालै:,वसुदेवनन्दन भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण चाहें तो अपने बाणरूपी अग्निकी लपटोंसे द्रोण और भीष्म--इन दोनों प्रसिद्ध महारथियोंको, पुत्रोंसहित सोमदत्तको तथा सारी कौरवसेनाको भी भस्म कर डालेंगे
droṇaṃ ca bhīṣmaṃ ca mahārathau tau sutair vṛtaṃ cāpatha somadattam | sarvāṇi sainyāni ca vāsudevaḥ pradhakṣyate sāyakavallijālaiḥ ||
Baladeva berkata: “Bila Śrī Kṛṣṇa, putra Vasudeva, berkehendak, ia dapat membakar hingga menjadi abu dengan jala nyala panahnya: Droṇa dan Bhīṣma—dua mahāratha termasyhur itu—beserta Somadatta yang dikelilingi putra-putranya, bahkan seluruh bala tentara. Namun yang ditunjukkan di sini bukan semata kuasa, melainkan kuasa yang ditahan demi dharma.”
बलदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights Kṛṣṇa’s overwhelming capability in war, while implicitly stressing ethical restraint: true alignment with dharma is not simply the ability to destroy, but the disciplined choice of when and why to use power.
Baladeva declares that if Kṛṣṇa (Vāsudeva) desired, he could annihilate even the greatest Kuru champions—Droṇa and Bhīṣma—along with Somadatta and his sons, and the entire host, by a ‘net’ of fiery arrows, underscoring Kṛṣṇa’s decisive potential in the conflict.