Shloka 7
Udyoga Parva Adhyaya 62 — Duryodhana’s Claim of Victory and Vidura’s Allegories on Discord and Risk
यदा परिकरिष्यन्ति ऐणेयानिव तन््तुना । अतरित्रानिव जले बाहुभिमामका रणे
yadā parikariṣyanti aiṇeyān iva tantunā | ataritrān iva jale bāhubhir māmākā raṇe ||
Disse Duryodhana: “Quando meus guerreiros, pela força de seus braços na batalha, capturarem e arrastarem os Pāṇḍavas como caçadores puxam cervos jovens presos na rede; e quando os subjugarem como a corrente que afoga barqueiros na água quando não há timoneiro—então, ao verem meu vasto exército, repleto de carros de guerra e cavaleiros de elefantes, esses Pāṇḍavas, e até mesmo Kṛṣṇa, abandonarão seu orgulho.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how arrogance and reliance on brute force distort moral judgment: Duryodhana imagines that sheer military pressure will break the Pāṇḍavas and even humble Kṛṣṇa. In the epic’s ethical frame, such overconfidence (mada/ahaṅkāra) is a sign of adharma and a precursor to downfall.
In Udyoga Parva, as war becomes imminent, Duryodhana speaks with swagger about the coming battle. He uses vivid similes—fawns dragged by a hunter’s net and helpless boatmen overwhelmed by water—to claim that his forces will overpower the Pāṇḍavas, forcing them (and Kṛṣṇa) to abandon their pride when confronted with his massive army.