Shloka 155

अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope

Devanagari script

यदाओषं मागधानां वरिष्ठ जरासन्धं क्षत्रमध्ये ज्वलन्तम्‌ । दोर्भ्या हतं भीमसेनेन गत्वा तदा नाशंसे विजयाय संजय,जब मैंने सुना कि मगधराज-शिरोमणि, क्षत्रियजातिके जाज्वल्यमान रत्न जरासन्धको भीमसेनने उसकी राजधानीमें जाकर बिना अस्त्र-शस्त्रके हाथोंसे ही चीर दिया। संजय! मेरी जीतकी आशा तो तभी टूट गयी

Transliteration

yadāśrauṣaṁ māgadhānāṁ variṣṭhaṁ jarāsandhaṁ kṣatramadhye jvalantam | dorbhyā hataṁ bhīmasenena gatvā tadā nāśaṁse vijayāya sañjaya ||

Translation

When I heard that Bhīmasena, going to his very capital, slew Jarāsandha—the foremost of the Magadhas, blazing in renown among the kṣatriyas—using only the strength of his arms and no weapons, then, Sañjaya, my hope of victory was shattered at that very moment. The report is not merely of a death, but of the collapse of a political and moral pillar: if such a champion could be brought down by sheer prowess and resolve, the balance of power—and the confidence built upon it—was decisively overturned.

Word by Word

• {'yadā': 'when', 'aśrauṣam (aśrauṣaṁ)': 'I heard', 'māgadhānām': 'of the Magadhas

• of the people/kingdom of Magadha', 'variṣṭham': 'the foremost, best', 'jarāsandham': 'Jarāsandha (proper name)', 'kṣatra-madhye': 'among the kṣatriyas

• in the midst of the warrior class', 'jvalantam': 'blazing, radiant (with power/renown)', 'dorbhyām': 'with (his) arms', 'hatam': 'slain, killed', 'bhīmasenena': 'by Bhīmasena', 'gatvā': 'having gone (there)', 'tadā': 'then, at that time', 'nāśaṁse': 'I did not hope / I ceased to hope', 'vijayāya': 'for victory', 'sañjaya': 'Sañjaya (addressed)'}

Characters & Entities

• Jarāsandha
• Bhīmasena
• Sañjaya
• Magadha
• Jarāsandha's capital (implied)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how confidence in victory rests on real assessments of strength and alliances: when a seemingly invincible pillar of power (Jarāsandha) falls through sheer human effort (Bhīma’s arms), strategic certainty collapses. Ethically, it underscores the kṣatriya ideal of direct prowess and the sobering recognition that power can be overturned unexpectedly.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker tells Sañjaya that upon hearing the news of Bhīmasena going to Jarāsandha’s own capital and killing him without weapons—by bodily strength alone—he immediately lost hope of winning, because this proved the opposing side’s extraordinary capability and shifted the perceived balance of power.