Shloka 43
Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)
तां कालरात्रीमिव पाशहस्तां यमस्य धात्रीमिव चोग्ररूपाम् | स ब्रह्मुदण्डप्रतिमाममोधां ससर्ज यत्तो युधि धर्मराज:,वह शक्ति पाश हाथमें लिये हुए कालरात्रिके समान उग्र, यमराजकी धायके समान भयंकर तथा ब्रह्मदण्डके समान अमोघ थी। धर्मराजने बड़े यत्न और सावधानीके साथ युद्धमें उसका प्रयोग किया था
tāṁ kālarātrīm iva pāśahastāṁ yamasya dhātrīm iva cograrūpām | sā brahmudaṇḍapratimām amodhāṁ sasarja yatto yudhi dharmarājaḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: Senjata itu—laksana Kālarātri sendiri dengan jerat di tangan, dan laksana pengasuh Yama yang garang—berwajah menggerunkan, serta tidak pernah meleset seperti tongkat Brahmā. Dharmarāja melontarkannya di medan perang dengan usaha sepenuh daya dan tekad yang amat berhati-hati.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when one is committed to dharma, the use of overwhelming and unfailing force in war carries moral gravity; therefore the righteous must act with heightened caution, self-control, and responsibility when deploying lethal power.
Sañjaya describes Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) releasing a formidable, unfailing weapon in battle, portraying it through terrifying metaphors—Kālarātri with a noose, Yama’s fierce attendant, and the irresistible rod of Brahmā—to convey its dread power and inevitability.