Shloka 38
भीष्मवधोपाय-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into the means to overcome Bhīṣma) | Chapter 103
वीर्यवद्धिस्ततस्तैस्तु पीडितो राक्षसोत्तम: । यथा युगक्षये घोरे चन्द्रमा: पञ्चभिरग्रहै:
vīryavaddhis tatais tu pīḍito rākṣasottamaḥ | yathā yugakṣaye ghore candramāḥ pañcabhir agrahaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Thus harried and pressed hard by those mighty warriors, the foremost of the Rākṣasas was overwhelmed—like the moon at the dreadful end of an age, when it is seized and afflicted by five grahas. The image underscores how even the powerful, when assailed by many forces at once, can be brought under crushing pressure in the moral chaos of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a cosmic simile to show that sheer power is not absolute: when many strong forces converge, even the mightiest can be subdued. In the ethical atmosphere of war, dominance shifts quickly, reminding the listener of impermanence and the limits of individual strength.
Sañjaya describes a leading Rākṣasa being severely pressed by a group of valiant fighters. He compares the Rākṣasa’s plight to the moon being afflicted by five grahas at the terrifying end of a cosmic age, emphasizing the intensity and inevitability of the pressure.