Shloka 100
एकधा च द्विधा चैव चतुर्धा च महाबलम् | योगिनामीश्वरं देवे शतशशो5थ सहस्रश:
ekadhā ca dvidhā caiva caturdhā ca mahābalam | yoginām īśvaraṃ deve śataśaśo ’tha sahasraśaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: That supremely mighty Lord—God of gods, the sovereign of yogins—manifests His power in many modes: as one, as two, and as four; and again in hundreds and in thousands of forms. The verse underscores the ethical vision that behind the turmoil of war stands a single divine sovereignty capable of appearing in countless ways, inviting reverence and steadiness of mind amid violence and uncertainty.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The Lord’s power is not limited to a single appearance: He can be one, dual, fourfold, and endlessly manifold. This supports a devotional and ethical stance of humility—recognizing a higher order that can encompass and guide even the chaos of war.
Vaiśampāyana, as narrator, describes the supreme Lord’s vast capacity for manifestation—an affirmation of divine supremacy and multiplicity inserted within the Shalya Parva’s war-time narration to frame events within a larger sacred reality.