Shloka 30
Vṛtra’s Cosmic Threat, Viṣṇu’s Upāya, and the Conditional Vulnerability
Udyoga-parva 10
वध्यो भवेयं विप्रेन्द्रा: शक्रस्य सह दैवतै: । एवं मे रोचते सन्धि: शक्रेण सह नित्यदा,“विप्रवरो! मैं देवताओंसहित इन्द्रके द्वारा न सूखी वस्तुसे; न गीली वस्तुसे; न पत्थरसे, न लकड़ीसे; न शस्त्रसे, न अस्त्रसे; न दिनमें और न रातमें ही मारा जाऊँ। इस शर्तपर देवेन्द्रके साथ सदाके लिये मेरी संधि हो तो मैं उसे पसंद करता हूँ”
vadhyo bhaveyaṁ viprendrāḥ śakrasya saha daivataiḥ | evaṁ me rocate sandhiḥ śakreṇa saha nityadā ||
シャリヤは言った。「婆羅門の中の最上者よ。われはインドラが諸神とともに討つべき者となろう——ただしこの条件のもとに限る。乾いたものでも濡れたものでも、石でも木でも、手に執る武器でも飛び道具でも、昼でも夜でも、われを殺してはならぬ。かくのごとき条件ならば、インドラとの永き盟約を我は是とする。」
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how alliances and protections can be framed through carefully worded conditions; ethically, it warns that seeking invulnerability through loopholes may still leave one exposed to unforeseen forms of harm, underscoring the limits of control in the face of destiny and moral consequence.
Śalya addresses a brahmin and expresses willingness to enter a lasting pact with Indra, but only if his death is constrained by specific exclusions (not by dry/wet things, stone/wood, weapons/missiles, and not by day/night), reflecting a negotiated “boon-like” condition attached to a treaty.