Mahabharata 9.13.38 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 13, Shloka 38
Book 9 (Śalya-parva), Adhyāya 13 — Arjuna’s Arrow-storm and the Drauṇi Confrontation
कथं नु समरे शक््यं तन््माधववचो महत् | न हि क्रुद्धो रणे राजा क्षपयेत बल॑ मम
sañjaya uvāca | kathaṁ nu samare śakyaṁ tan-mādhava-vaco mahat | na hi kruddho raṇe rājā kṣapayet balaṁ mama |
‘ഈ യുദ്ധത്തിനിടയിൽ മാധവൻ (ശ്രീകൃഷ്ണൻ) അരുളിച്ചെയ്ത ആ മഹാവചനം എങ്ങനെ സഫലമാകും? കാരണം, റണത്തിൽ ക്രുദ്ധനായ രാജാവ് ശല്യൻ നിയന്ത്രണമില്ലാതെ പ്രഹരിച്ചാൽ എന്റെ മുഴുവൻ സൈന്യവും നശിപ്പിച്ചേക്കും.’
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between a trusted, ‘great’ assurance (Kṛṣṇa’s words) and the unpredictable force of human anger in war. It frames ethical concern: when rulers fight in wrath, restraint collapses and destruction becomes indiscriminate, threatening any intended plan or promised outcome.
Sañjaya voices apprehension about the course of the battle: he wonders how Kṛṣṇa’s significant statement will prove true if Śalya becomes furious in combat, since an enraged Śalya could devastate ‘our’ forces. The line functions as a worried forecast amid shifting battlefield leadership and morale.
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