Shloka 174
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
यदाश्रौष॑ नरनारायणौ तौ कृष्णार्जुनौ वदतो नारदस्य । अहं द्रष्टा ब्रह्मलोके च सम्यक् तदा नाशंसे विजयाय संजय,जब देवर्षि नारदके मुखसे मैंने यह बात सुनी कि श्रीकृष्ण और अर्जुन साक्षात् नर और नारायण हैं और इन्हें मैंने ब्रह्मलोकमें भलीभाँति देखा है, तभीसे मैंने विजयकी आशा छोड़ दी
yadāśrauṣaṁ nara-nārāyaṇau tau kṛṣṇārjunau vadato nāradasya | ahaṁ draṣṭā brahmaloke ca samyak tadā nāśaṁse vijayāya sañjaya ||
When I heard from the divine seer Nārada that Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are indeed Nara and Nārāyaṇa themselves—and when I had also seen them clearly in Brahmaloka—then, O Sañjaya, from that very time I gave up any hope of victory (for the side opposed to them).
Educational Q&A
Recognizing the divine nature and dharmic support behind Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna makes the outcome morally and cosmically inevitable: opposition to them is opposition to a divinely sanctioned order, so confidence in victory against them is misplaced.
The speaker recalls hearing from Nārada that Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are the incarnate pair Nara and Nārāyaṇa, and adds personal confirmation from having seen them in Brahmaloka; based on this double authority (sage testimony and direct vision), he tells Sañjaya that he abandoned hope of victory for the opposing side.