Shloka 5
Duryodhana-patana-anuśocana
The Fall of Duryodhana and the Contest of Restraint
मायया निर्जिता देवैरसुरा इति न: श्रुतम् । विरोचनस्तु शक्रेण मायया निर्जित: स वै,हमने सुना है कि देवताओंने पूर्वकालमें मायासे ही असुरोंपर विजय पायी थी और इन्द्रने मायासे ही विरोचनको परास्त किया था
māyayā nirjitā devair asurā iti naḥ śrutam | virocanas tu śakreṇa māyayā nirjitaḥ sa vai ||
Vāsudeva disse: “Ouvimos que, em tempos antigos, os deuses venceram os Asuras por meio de māyā (ilusão estratégica). Do mesmo modo, Śakra (Indra) de fato subjugou Virocana através de māyā.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that victory is not always achieved by sheer force; māyā—understood as tactical ingenuity or deceptive stratagem—has been used even by the Devas. Ethically, it raises the tension between straightforward righteousness and the pragmatic use of cunning in conflict.
Vāyu cites a remembered tradition: the Devas once overcame the Asuras through māyā, and Indra similarly defeated Virocana by māyā. The statement functions as an illustrative precedent to justify or explain the role of stratagem in the present context.