Shloka 51
द्रोणपर्व — अध्याय ८७: सात्यकेरनुयात्रा
Sātyaki’s resolve and departure to reach Arjuna
न जातु तस्य कर्माणि युधि गाण्डीवधन्चन: । अपकृत्य महत् तात सोढुं शक्ष्यन्ति मामका:
na jātu tasya karmāṇi yudhi gāṇḍīvadhanvanaḥ | apakṛtya mahat tāta soḍhuṁ śakṣyanti māmakāḥ ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Never will my sons be able to endure, dear one, the mighty retaliation in battle that will arise from the deeds of that bowman who bears the Gāṇḍīva. Having committed a grave wrong, they will not have the strength to bear its consequences.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Wrongdoing (apakṛtya mahat) inevitably brings consequences that may exceed one’s capacity to endure; Dhṛtarāṣṭra recognizes that unjust actions invite overwhelming retaliation, especially when opposed by a righteous and powerful agent like Arjuna.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, reflecting on the war, expresses fear and foreboding that his side (the Kauravas) will not be able to withstand Arjuna—the wielder of the Gāṇḍīva—once the results of their grave offenses unfold on the battlefield.