Shloka 1
अप्--#रू- एकाशीतितमो<ध्याय: उलूपीका अर्जुनके पूछनेपर अपने आगमनका कारण एवं अर्जुनकी पराजयका रहस्य बताना, पुत्र और पत्नीसे विदा लेकर पार्थका पुन: अश्व॒के पीछे जाना अर्जुन उवाच किमागमनकृत्यं ते कौरव्यकुलनन्दिनि । मणिपूरपतेर्मातुस्तथैव च रणाजिरे,अर्जुन बोले--कौरव्य नामके कुलको आनन्दित करनेवाली उलूपी! इस रणभूमिमें तुम्हारे और मणिपुरनरेश बश्रुवाहनकी माता चित्रांगदाके आनेका क्या कारण है?
Arjuna uvāca: kim āgamanakṛtyaṃ te kauravyakulanandini | maṇipūrapater mātus tathaiva ca raṇājire ||
Arjuna said: “O Ulūpī, delight of the Kuru line, for what purpose have you come here? And likewise, why has the mother of the king of Maṇipura come to this battlefield?”
अर्जुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds ethical accountability in conflict: even a great warrior pauses to ask the reason behind unexpected interventions on the battlefield, implying that actions in war should be intelligible in terms of purpose (kṛtya) and relational duty (kula).
After events on the battlefield involving Maṇipura, Arjuna addresses Ulūpī and also refers to the Maṇipura king’s mother, asking why they have come there and what objective their arrival serves—setting up the explanation of the cause behind Arjuna’s setback and the larger purpose of their intervention.