Shloka 16
Adhyāya 113: Karṇa–Bhīma Śaravarṣa and the Battlefield Aftermath (कर्णभीमशरवर्षः)
जयद्रथं च हत्वाहं द्रुतमेष्यामि माधव । धर्मराजं न चेद् द्रोणो निगृह्लीयाद् रणे बलात्,“माधव! यदि द्रोणाचार्य रणक्षेत्रमें धर्मरमाजको बलपूर्वक बंदी न बना सकें तो मैं जयद्रथका वध करके शीघ्र ही लौट आऊँगा
sañjaya uvāca | jayadrathaṃ ca hatvāhaṃ drutam eṣyāmi mādhava | dharmarājaṃ na ced droṇo nigṛhṇīyād raṇe balāt ||
Sañjaya said: “O Mādhava, having slain Jayadratha, I shall return swiftly—provided Droṇa does not, by sheer force in battle, seize and take captive Dharmarāja.” The statement frames Arjuna’s vow within the moral tension of war: the urgent pursuit of a single culpable foe is set against the grave ethical and strategic catastrophe of Yudhiṣṭhira’s capture, which would imperil the very cause of dharma the Pāṇḍavas claim to uphold.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a righteous vow in war must be weighed against larger dharmic and strategic consequences: the pursuit of Jayadratha is urgent, yet the potential capture of Dharmarāja would undermine the moral and political foundation of the Pāṇḍava cause.
Sañjaya reports the resolve (addressed to Kṛṣṇa as Mādhava) that after killing Jayadratha, the speaker will return quickly—unless Droṇa manages to seize Yudhiṣṭhira in battle by force, a looming danger during the day’s fighting.