Shloka 5
सूतपुत्रो जरासंधश्वेदिराजो निषादज: । सुयोधनं समाश्रित्य जयेयु: पृथिवीमिमाम्,सूतपुत्र कर्ण, जरासंध, चेदिराज शिशुपाल और निषादनन्दन एकलव्य--ये चारों मिलकर यदि दुर्योधनका पक्ष लेते तो इस पृथ्वीको अवश्य ही जीत लेते
sūtaputro jarāsandhaś cedirājo niṣādajaḥ | suyodhanaṁ samāśritya jayeyuḥ pṛthivīm imām ||
Vāyu said: “Karna the charioteer’s son, Jarāsandha, the king of Cedi, and the Niṣāda-born (Ekalavya)—if these, taking refuge in Suyodhana (Duryodhana) as their leader, had stood together on his side, they would surely have conquered this entire earth.” The statement underscores how the alignment of extraordinary strength with an unrighteous cause can threaten the world, and how outcomes in war are shaped not only by valor but by alliances and the moral direction of leadership.
श्रीवायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the decisive force of alliances: immense prowess, when unified under a leader, can overturn the world’s balance. Implicitly, it warns that power without dharmic orientation—when placed in the service of an unrighteous cause—becomes a grave danger to the earth and its order.
Vāyudeva is describing a counterfactual: if four formidable figures—Karna, Jarāsandha, the Cedi king (linked with Śiśupāla in tradition), and Ekalavya—had joined Duryodhana’s side together, they would have been capable of conquering the whole world, emphasizing how close the war’s outcome can hinge on who stands with whom.