Shloka 4
उत्तरो बृहन्नडां सारथ्याय नियुङ्क्ते — Uttara Appoints Bṛhannadā as Charioteer
एते मत्स्यानुपागम्य विराटस्य महीपते: । घोषान् विद्राव्य तरसा गोधनं जहुरोजसा,इन सबने राजा विराटके मत्स्यदेशमें आकर उनके गोष्ठोंमें भगदड़ मचा दी और बड़े वेगसे बलपूर्वक गोधनका अपहरण करना आरम्भ किया
ete matsyān upāgamya virāṭasya mahīpateḥ | ghoṣān vidrāvya tarasā godhanaṃ jahur ojasā ||
Setibanya di negeri Matsya milik Raja Virāṭa, mereka dengan pantas mencetuskan huru-hara di kandang-kandang lembu; lalu, bersandar pada kekuatan semata-mata, mereka mula menggiring dan merampas kawanan itu.
वैशमग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights adharma expressed as plunder: using strength to terrorize settlements and seize cattle violates righteous conduct and the king’s duty-bound order. It implicitly affirms the ethical necessity of protecting subjects’ livelihoods and restraining violence motivated by greed.
A group of attackers enters the Matsya realm, causes chaos in King Virāṭa’s cattle-stations, and begins forcibly driving away the cattle herds. This incident triggers the ensuing response from Virāṭa’s side and advances the larger conflict dynamics of the epic.