Brahmāstra-prayogaḥ: Daśagrīvasya Māyā-vadhaḥ
Rāma–Rāvaṇa Encounter under Illusion
मनन््ये कालश्व भगवान् दैवं च विधिनिर्मितम् । भवितव्यं च भूतानां यस्य नास्ति व्यतिक्रम:,मेरी समझमें भगवान् काल, विधिनिर्मित दैव और समस्त प्राणियोंकी भवितव्यता अर्थात् उनके लिये होनेवाली घटना-ये तीनों ही प्रबल हैं; इनको कोई टाल नहीं सकता
manye kālaś ca bhagavān daivaṃ ca vidhinirmitaṃ | bhavitavyaṃ ca bhūtānāṃ yasya nāsti vyatikramaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “I hold that Time itself is a sovereign power; and so too is destiny, fashioned by the ordinance of law. And there is the inevitable course appointed for all beings—something that admits of no transgression. No one can avert what must come to pass.”
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
The verse asserts the overwhelming power of Kāla (Time), Daiva (destiny), and Bhavitavya (the inevitable outcome). Ethically, it frames human life as operating within an unbreakable cosmic order, encouraging steadiness, humility, and acceptance of what cannot be prevented while still valuing righteous conduct within one’s limits.
Yudhiṣṭhira reflects aloud on the forces governing events, emphasizing that certain outcomes are unavoidable. In the Vana Parva context, this kind of reflection typically arises amid hardship and uncertainty, as he seeks to understand suffering and the limits of human agency through the lens of dharma and cosmic law.