Shloka 146

Devanagari script

वेगं समर्था: संसोढुं वज़स्येव महीधरा: । जैसे बड़े-बड़े पर्वत भी वज्गजका वेग सहन करनेमें समर्थ नहीं हैं, उसी प्रकार युद्धकी इच्छा रखनेवाले और क्रोधमें भरे हुए मुझ सात्यकिके प्रहार-वेगको सहन करनेकी सामर्थ्य उनमेंसे किसीमें भी नहीं है

Transliteration

vegaṃ samarthāḥ saṃsoḍhuṃ vajrasyeva mahīdharāḥ |

Translation

വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു— വലിയ പർവതങ്ങൾക്കുപോലും വജ്രത്തിന്റെ പ്രഹാരവേഗം സഹിക്കാനാവില്ല; അതുപോലെ യുദ്ധാഗ്രഹത്താലും ക്രോധത്താലും നിറഞ്ഞിരിക്കുന്ന അവരിൽ ഒരാളും എന്റെ—സാത്യകിയുടെ—പ്രഹാരവേഗം താങ്ങാനുള്ള ശക്തിയുള്ളവനല്ല।

Word by Word

वेगम्speed, impetus

समर्थाःcapable

संसोढुम्to endure, to bear

वज्रस्यof the thunderbolt

इवlike, as

महीधराःmountains (earth-bearers)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

vajra (Indra’s thunderbolt)

mahīdharāḥ (mountains)

Sātyaki (implied by the accompanying sense)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses a thunderbolt–mountain simile to stress that uncontrolled wrath and the thirst for battle do not automatically confer true strength; real power is measured by the capacity to endure and prevail, not merely by aggressive intent.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Udyoga Parva’s tense pre-war atmosphere, the narration highlights martial confidence through a vivid comparison: just as mountains cannot bear a thunderbolt’s impact, the opponents are portrayed as unable to withstand the speaker’s (Sātyaki’s) attack-force.