Shloka 53
जगद् विनिर्दहेदेवमल्पतेजसि पातितम् | पीड्यमानेन बलवत् प्रयोज्यं स्याद्ू धनंजय
arjuna uvāca | jagad vinirdahad evam alpatejasi pātitam | pīḍyamānena balavat prayojyaṃ syād dhanaṃjaya ||
Arjuna said: “If, when cast down upon one of little splendor, it would burn up the whole world in this manner, then it should be employed only with great force against one who is truly powerful—O Dhanañjaya.”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power must be used with restraint and proportionality. A force capable of catastrophic harm should not be unleashed on a weak opponent; it is ethically appropriate only when truly necessary against a formidable threat.
Arjuna reflects on the destructive potential of a mighty force (implicitly a weapon or power). Observing that it could ‘burn the world’ even when used on someone of lesser power, he argues it should be reserved for use—if at all—only against a genuinely powerful adversary.