Shloka 20

Adhyāya 41 — Kṛṣṇa’s Battlefield Briefing and the Renewal of the Great Engagement

Devanagari script

आशीदविपष॑ दुर्धरमप्रमेयं सुतीक्षणदंष्टं ज्वलनप्रभावम्‌

Transliteration

āśīd avipaḥ durdharam aprameyaṃ sutīkṣṇadaṃṣṭraṃ jvalanaprabhāvam

Translation

ਸੰਜਯ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ—ਉਹ ਸੱਪ ਵਰਗਾ ਸੀ—ਸਹਿਣ ਤੋਂ ਪਰੇ, ਅਪਾਰ; ਉਸ ਦੇ ਦੰਦ ਬੇਹੱਦ ਤਿੱਖੇ ਸਨ ਅਤੇ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਪ੍ਰਕ੍ਰਿਤੀ ਅੱਗ ਵਾਂਗ ਦਹਕਦੀ ਸੀ।

Word by Word

• आसीत्: was
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), 3, Singular

• अविषम्: a poisonless one / non-poison (i.e., harmless)
• अविषम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अविष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• दुर्धरम्: hard to bear/withstand
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्धर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• अप्रमेयम्: immeasurable, unfathomable
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अप्रमेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• सुतीक्ष्णदंष्ट्रम्: having very sharp fangs
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुतीक्ष्ण-दंष्ट्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• ज्वलनप्रभावम्: of blazing/fire-like power
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ज्वलन-प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• सर्प (serpent, implied by avipaḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses a serpent-and-fire simile to highlight how destructive force in war can become immeasurable and difficult to resist; ethically, it cautions that rage and violence, once unleashed, turn into a peril that threatens all sides and demands restraint and discernment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing a terrifying, overpowering presence—likened to a venomous serpent with razor-sharp fangs and a fiery potency—emphasizing the intensity and danger of the combat situation being reported to Dhṛtarāṣṭra.