Shloka 63
अड्गुष्ठमात्रो भूत्वा च पुनरेव स राक्षस:
aṅguṣṭhamātro bhūtvā ca punareva sa rākṣasaḥ
Sañjaya said: The rākṣasa, having become no bigger than a thumb, then again resumed his form—an act of deceptive self-transformation that underscores the peril of illusion and stealth amid the brutal ethics of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how deceptive power and shape-shifting can be used to gain advantage in war, raising a dharmic tension: victory pursued through illusion and stealth often signals moral danger and the erosion of straightforward kṣatriya conduct.
Sañjaya reports that a rākṣasa temporarily reduces himself to a thumb-sized form and then returns to his previous form, implying a tactical transformation—likely to evade notice, infiltrate, or strike unexpectedly.