Shloka 37
Book 10, Adhyāya 12: Aśvatthāmā’s Request for the Cakra and the Brahmaśiras Context
प्रार्थितं ते मया चक्रं देवदानवपूजितम् । अजेय: स्यामिति विभो सत्यमेतद् ब्रवीमि ते
prārthitaṁ te mayā cakraṁ devadānavapūjitam | ajeyaḥ syām iti vibho satyam etad bravīmi te ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “I begged from you that discus, revered by both gods and Dānavas, thinking, ‘O Lord, may I become unconquerable.’ I tell you this truth.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds satya (truthfulness) and moral accountability: the speaker openly admits the motive behind seeking a divine weapon—personal invincibility—implying that power sought for self-security or dominance must be examined ethically, especially in a war context.
Vaiśampāyana reports a confession: someone addresses a powerful lord, stating that they had requested a celebrated divine discus—venerated by gods and Dānavas—so that they might become unconquerable, and now declares this motive as the truth.