Shloka 20
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 47 — Arjuna’s Deterrent Declaration
Sañjaya’s Report
महाभये वीतभय: कृतास्त्र: समागमे शत्रुबलावमर्दी । सकृद् रथेनाप्रतिमान् रथौघान् पदातिसंघान् गदयाभिनिध्नन्
sañjaya uvāca |
mahābhaye vītabhayaḥ kṛtāstraḥ samāgame śatrubalāvamardī |
sakṛd rathenāpratimān rathaughān padātisaṅghān gadayābhinighnan ||
サンジャヤは言った。「大いなる危難の中にあっても彼は恐れず、あらゆる武器の術に通じ、戦場では敵勢を踏み砕く者である。ビーマセーナはただ一台の戦車に乗り、棍棒の一撃一撃で比類なき戦車の群れと密なる歩兵の列を打ち倒す――それは圧倒的な力の相であり、不義の戦がもたらす滅びと、それを招いた者に降りかかる苦い悔恨を告げる。」
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the terrifying competence of a righteous warrior—fearless and fully trained—while implicitly warning that initiating an unjust war invites catastrophic destruction and later remorse for those responsible.
Sanjaya describes Bhimasena’s battlefield prowess: riding a single chariot, he will smash through vast formations of enemy chariots and infantry with his mace, crushing the enemy’s strength in the coming conflict.