Shloka 226
अलर्कोपाख्यानम् — Indriya-Nigraha and Yogic Victory
Mahābhārata 14.30
अन्यान् बाणान् समीक्षस्व यैस्त्वं मां सूदयिष्यसि । आँखने कहा--अलर्क! ये बाण मुझे किसी प्रकार नहीं छेद सकते। ये तुम्हारे ही मर्मस्थानोंको बींध डालेंगे और मर्म विदीर्ण हो जानेपर तुम्हें ही जीवनसे हाथ धोना पड़ेगा। अतः दूसरे प्रकारके सायकोंका प्रबन्ध सोचो
anyān bāṇān samīkṣasva yais tvaṃ māṃ sūdayiṣyasi |
Alarka disse: «Considera outras flechas — aquelas com as quais talvez possas matar-me. As flechas que escolheste agora não podem, de modo algum, trespassar-me; elas recairão sobre ti e perfurarão os teus próprios pontos vitais (marma), e, uma vez dilacerados esses marma, serás tu quem terá de perder a vida. Portanto, pensa em prover-te de outro tipo de setas, com cuja ajuda possas matar-me.»
अलर्क उवाच
Educational Q&A
Force must be guided by discernment: choosing means without understanding their efficacy and consequences can harm the aggressor. The verse frames violence as accountable action, not mere impulse.
Alarka addresses an opponent in a martial exchange, telling him to reconsider and select different arrows—implying the current weapons cannot harm Alarka and may instead rebound disastrously on the attacker.