Shloka 21
Traigarta Attempt to Seize the Aśvamedha Horse; Arjuna’s Restraint and Tactical Victory
तत्र युद्धानि वृत्तानि यान्यासन् पाण्डवस्य ह । तानि वक्ष्यामि ते वीर विचित्राणि महान्ति च,वीर! उन देशोंमें अर्जुनको जो बड़े-बड़े अद्भुत युद्ध करने पड़े, उनकी कथा तुम्हें सुना रहा हूँ
tatra yuddhāni vṛttāni yānyāsan pāṇḍavasya ha | tāni vakṣyāmi te vīra vicitrāṇi mahānti ca ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “There, the battles that occurred for the Pāṇḍava (Arjuna)—great and wondrous in their variety—I shall now recount to you, O hero.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames warfare as an event to be ethically remembered and examined through truthful narration: great deeds—especially violent ones—are not merely celebrated but carefully recounted, implying responsibility, context, and discernment in how heroic action is understood.
Vaiśaṃpāyana transitions into a detailed account of the remarkable battles Arjuna faced during the Ashvamedha-related wanderings, signaling that a sequence of significant conflicts is about to be narrated to the listener addressed as “vīra.”