Shloka 343
प्रादुश्षक्रे महामायां राक्षसीं पाण्डुनन्दन: । कर्णको दिव्यास्त्रका संधान करते देख पाण्डवनन्दन घटोत्कचने अपनी राक्षसी महामाया प्रकट की
prāduścakre mahāmāyāṃ rākṣasīṃ pāṇḍunandanaḥ |
Sañjaya said: The son of Pāṇḍu manifested his great, rākṣasa-born illusion (mahāmāyā). In the midst of battle, this signals the resort to extraordinary, non-ordinary means—where power, deception, and counter-deception become instruments of war, raising the ethical tension between necessity in combat and the ideal of straightforward conduct.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in extreme conflict, combatants may employ extraordinary powers and deception. It invites reflection on the moral strain of war: even when survival and duty press hard, reliance on illusion underscores how warfare can erode the ideal of transparent, righteous conduct.
Sañjaya reports that the Pāṇḍava (here understood as Ghaṭotkaca) produces a formidable rākṣasa-type magical illusion on the battlefield, intensifying the struggle through supernatural stratagem rather than ordinary weapons alone.