Shloka 21
ब्राह्मणपूजा-राजधर्मः | Royal Duty of Honoring Learned Brahmins
महातेजस्वी महाबली राजा दिवोदासने पुरीसे बाहर निकलकर उन राजकुमारोंके साथ युद्ध किया। उनका वह युद्ध देवासुर-संग्रामके समान भयंकर था ।।
mahātejasvī mahābalī rājā divodāsaḥ purīṣaḥ bahiḥ nirgatyātha taiḥ rājaputraiḥ saha yuddham akarot | tasya tad yuddhaṃ devāsura-saṅgrāma-sadṛśaṃ bhayaṅkaram āsīt || sa tu yuddhe mahārāja dinānāṃ daśatīr daśa | hata-vāhana-bhūyiṣṭhas tato dainyam upāgamat ||
ビーシュマは言った。大いなる光輝と剛力を備えたディヴォダーサ王は、都の外へ出てその王子たちと戦った。その合戦は、神々と阿修羅の戦争のごとく凄惨であった。大王よ、彼は長き日々にわたり戦い続けたが、乗騎や戦車の多くを失うに及んで窮乏に沈んだ。兵は倒れ、戦象と馬も多く斃れ、資財は尽き、ついには都を捨てて逃走した。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage underscores the fragility of royal power in prolonged warfare: even a mighty king can be reduced to misery when his forces, mounts, and resources are steadily destroyed. It implicitly warns that war drains both material strength and political stability, and that prudence and dharmic governance must account for the true costs of conflict.
Divodasa comes out from his city and fights alongside (or against) princes in a terrifying battle likened to the Deva–Asura war. After fighting for a very long time, he suffers heavy losses—especially of vehicles/mounts—falls into a pitiable condition, and ultimately abandons his capital and flees.