Shloka 16
उलूकदूतवाक्यम् / Ulūka’s Message to the Pāṇḍavas
Devanagari script
स भोजराज: सैन्येन महता परिवारित:
Transliteration
sa bhojarājaḥ sainyena mahatā parivāritaḥ
Translation
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。そのボージャ王は大軍に囲まれ護衛されつつ進み、王権の威容を示した——この場面では、政治の権威が軍事力と切り離せず、迫り来る衝突の倫理的緊張と結びついていることを物語る。
Word by Word
सःhe
सः:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootतद्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
भोजराजःthe king of the Bhojas
भोजराजः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootभोजराज
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
सैन्येनby/with an army
सैन्येन:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootसैन्य
FormNeuter, Instrumental, Singular
महतāgreat, large
महतā:
Karana
TypeAdjective
Rootमहत्
FormNeuter, Instrumental, Singular
परिवारितःsurrounded, attended
परिवारितः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootपरि + वृत्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
Speaker
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Characters & Entities
V
VaiśampāyanaB
Bhojarāja (Bhoja king)S
sainya (army)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The line highlights a Mahābhārata motif: royal authority is publicly manifested through military backing. Ethically, it foreshadows how political decisions in the Udyoga Parva are pressured by force and preparedness for war, raising questions of dharma in governance.
Vaiśampāyana describes a Bhoja king moving about (or being present) while surrounded by a large army, indicating a formal royal entourage and a tense, militarized setting typical of the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war mobilization.