Shloka 5
Rukmī’s Offer of Aid and Arjuna’s Refusal (रुक्मिप्रस्तावः—अर्जुनप्रत्याख्यानम्)
तानभ्ययुस्तदा वैश्या: शूद्राश्नैव पितामह । एकतत्तु त्रयो वर्णा एकत: क्षत्रियर्षभा:
tān abhyayus tadā vaiśyāḥ śūdrāś caiva pitāmaha | ekatas tu trayo varṇā ekataḥ kṣatriyarṣabhāḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「祖父よ、その時、ヴァイシャとシュードラもまた、バラモンとともに彼らを攻めようと突進した。かくして一方には三つの身分が結束し、他方にはクシャトリヤの精鋭、雄牛のごとき最上の戦士たちが立っていた。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how conflict can draw in broader sections of society beyond the warrior class, showing the social spread of violence and the moral weight of collective escalation when dharma is strained.
Vaiśampāyana reports to an elder (‘Grandfather’) that not only one group but multiple social orders—Vaiśyas and Śūdras as well—joined the charge, forming one side, opposed by a select body of elite Kṣatriya fighters on the other.