Shloka 273
Vṛddha-kanyā-carita and Balarāma’s Kurukṣetra Inquiry (वृद्धकन्या-चरितम् / कुरुक्षेत्रफल-प्रश्नः)
ऋते<स्थिभिर्दधीचस्य निहन्तुं त्रिदशद्विष: । तदनन्तर इन्द्रने देवताओंसे कहा--“दधीच मुनिकी अस्थियोंके सिवा और किसी अस्त्र- शस्त्रसे मेरे द्वारा देवद्रोही महान् असुर नहीं मारे जा सकते
ṛte 'sthibhir dadhīcasya nihantuṃ tridaśadviṣaḥ | tadanantara indreṇa devatābhyo 'se kahā— “dadhīca munikī asthiyoṃ ke sivā aur kisī astra-śastrase mere dvārā devadrohī mahān asura nahīṃ māre jā sakate”
Vaiśampāyana said: “Except with the bones of the sage Dadhīca, it is not possible to slay the enemy of the gods.” After this, Indra told the deities that no other weapon could, by his hand, bring down that great demon who had turned against the gods—only Dadhīca’s bones could become the means. The passage underscores a moral logic of sacrifice: the victory of the devas depends not merely on force, but on the sanctified self-offering of a righteous ascetic.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights that righteous power and victory may depend on self-sacrifice and sanctity rather than ordinary force; Dadhīca’s ascetic merit becomes the decisive ‘weapon,’ implying that ethical and spiritual capital can determine outcomes in cosmic conflict.
Vaiśampāyana reports that Indra informs the gods that the great enemy of the devas cannot be killed by conventional weapons; only an extraordinary means—Dadhīca’s bones fashioned into a weapon—can accomplish the slaying.