Shloka 14
जयद्रथवध-प्रतिज्ञा
Arjuna’s Vow to Neutralize Jayadratha
नो चेद्धि वयमप्येनं महीमनु शयीमहि । बीभत्सो: कोपदीप्तस्य दग्धा: कृपणचक्षुषा,“यदि हमलोग अभिमन्युके साथ ही उस रणदक्षेत्रमें शयन न कर सके तो अब क्रोधसे उत्तेजित हुए अर्जुनके शोकाकुल नेत्रोंसे हमें अवश्य दग्ध होना पड़ेगा
no ced dhi vayam apy enaṃ mahīm anu śayīmahi | bībhatsaḥ kopadīptasya dagdhāḥ kṛpaṇacakṣuṣā ||
Sañjaya said: If we cannot at least lie upon the earth beside him (fallen in battle), then we shall surely be consumed—burned down—by Arjuna, the Terrible, when his wrath is kindled, as he looks on with eyes made pitiable by grief. The line conveys the Kauravas’ dread that the moral shock of Abhimanyu’s death will turn Arjuna’s sorrow into a righteous, annihilating fury.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how grievous wrongdoing in war rebounds ethically and psychologically: the death of a noble warrior (Abhimanyu) is expected to ignite a justified, unstoppable retaliation. It underscores that violence carries consequences beyond tactics—provoking moral outrage that can overturn the balance of power.
Sañjaya voices the Kauravas’ fear that if they do not die on the battlefield alongside the fallen hero, they will instead be destroyed by Arjuna’s impending fury. Arjuna’s grief is portrayed as transforming into a blazing wrath that will ‘burn’ his enemies through his relentless assault.