Shloka 17
Adhyāya 8: Saṃprahāra-varṇana and Bhīma–Kṣemadhūrti Dvipa-Yuddha
Combat Description and Elephant Duel
इति यः सततं मन्दमवोचल्लो भमोहितम् । दुर्योधनमवाचीनं राज्यकामुकमातुरम्
iti yaḥ satataṃ mandam avocallobhamohitam | duryodhanam avācīnaṃ rājyakāmukam āturam ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana berkata: Demikianlah dia berulang kali menegur Duryodhana—yang tumpul akal, dibutakan oleh ketamakan, jatuh dari keluhuran dharma, dirundung hasrat akan kerajaan dan dihimpit keresahan—yang duduk dengan wajah muram, sambil berkata lagi dan lagi: “Aku seorang diri, di medan perang, akan menumbangkan serentak dari kereta ilahi mereka dua wira yang tidak pernah ditaklukkan itu, Kṛṣṇa dan Arjuna, pemegang busur Śārṅga dan Gāṇḍīva.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Unchecked desire for power, combined with greed and delusion, leads to moral decline and reckless overconfidence. The verse frames Duryodhana’s mindset as ethically degraded (avācīna) and psychologically agitated (ātura), showing how inner disorder distorts judgment about dharma and reality.
Vaiśaṃpāyana reports that someone repeatedly spoke to Duryodhana, who sat dejected and anxious for the kingdom. The speaker boasts that he alone will kill both Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna together on the battlefield, even from their divine chariot—emphasizing the extremity of the claim against two famed, ‘unconquered’ warriors.