Shloka 9
Abhimanyu’s Śrāddha; Vyāsa’s Assurance of the Unborn Heir (अभिमन्योः श्राद्धं तथा गर्भरक्षणोपदेशः)
सदृशाक्षस्तव कथं शत्रुभिर्निहतो रणे । दुर्मरं बत वार्ष्णेय काले<प्राप्ते नृभि: सह
sadṛśākṣas tava kathaṁ śatrubhir nihato raṇe | durmaraṁ bata vārṣṇeya kāle prāpte nṛbhiḥ saha ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「どうして汝の子サドリシャークシャは、戦場で敵に討たれ得たのか。ああ、ヴァールシュニーヤよ、定められた時が来れば、いかに討ち難き者とて、その配下とともに終わりを迎えるのだ。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring ethical reflection that even the most formidable warrior is not beyond death when Kāla (the destined time) arrives; human prowess is limited, and outcomes in war are ultimately subject to fate and the moral order that frames mortality.
Vaiśampāyana reports a death in battle: Sadṛśākṣa, described as difficult to overcome, has been killed by enemies. The speaker addresses a “Vārṣṇeya,” lamenting that with the arrival of the appointed time, Sadṛśākṣa fell along with his men.