नकुलस्य प्रतीची-दिग्विजयः
Nakula’s Conquest of the Western Quarter
ततः स गण्डकाउछूरो विदेहान् भरतर्षभ:,महता बलचक्रेण परराष्ट्रावमर्दिना । हस्त्यश्वरथपूर्णेन दंशितेन प्रतापवान् २ ।।
tataḥ sa gaṇḍakaucchūro videhān bharatarṣabhaḥ, mahatā balacakreṇa pararāṣṭrāvamardinā | hasty-aśva-ratha-pūrṇena daṃśitena pratāpavān || vṛto bharataśārṭūlo dviṣacchoka-vivardhanaḥ |
वैशंपायन म्हणाले— त्यानंतर भरतश्रेष्ठ महाबली भीमसेन पुढे सरकला आणि गंडक प्रदेश व विदेह देश अल्पावधीत जिंकून घेतला. शत्रुराज्ये चिरडणाऱ्या, हत्ती-घोडे-रथांनी परिपूर्ण व कवच-शस्त्रांनी सज्ज अशा विशाल सैन्यचक्राने तो वेढलेला होता; शत्रूंचा शोक वाढवीत तो पुढे गेला.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse frames military expansion as an extension of royal duty (rājadharma): force is organized, disciplined, and directed toward political objectives—subduing hostile realms—rather than portrayed as personal violence. It highlights the ethical ideal that a kṣatriya’s power should operate under command and for the stability of the kingdom.
Vaiśaṃpāyana describes a leading Bharata warrior marching with a large, fully equipped army—elephants, horses, and chariots—to subdue the Gaṇḍaka region and the Videhas, thereby causing fear and grief among enemies as part of a broader campaign of conquest.