Shloka 153
युधिष्ठिरस्य कृष्णार्जुनादि-समाश्वासनम्
Yudhiṣṭhira’s reassurance and praise of Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna, Bhīma, and Sātyaki
न तुल्या: सात्यकिशरा येषां भीत: पलायसे । 'रणक्षेत्रमें अर्जुनके बाण सूर्य और अग्निके समान तेजस्वी हैं। उनके समान सात्यकिके बाण नहीं हैं, जिनसे भयभीत होकर तुम भागे जा रहे हो
na tulyāḥ sātyakiśarā yeṣāṃ bhītaḥ palāyase | raṇakṣetre 'rjunasya bāṇāḥ sūryāgnisamatejasvinaḥ | teṣāṃ samāḥ sātyakiśarā na santi, yaiḥ bhayabhītaḥ tvaṃ palāyase ||
Sañjaya said: “On the battlefield, Arjuna’s arrows blaze with a radiance like the sun and fire. Sātyaki’s shafts are not equal to those; it is from fear of Arjuna’s arrows that you are fleeing.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores discernment and moral clarity in war: true assessment of strength matters, and fleeing from fear reveals the overwhelming prowess of a righteous warrior’s weapons; it also implicitly critiques panic and loss of kṣatriya steadiness under pressure.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the opponent is retreating in fear, not because of Sātyaki’s arrows, but because Arjuna’s arrows—likened to the sun and fire—are far more formidable on the battlefield.