Shloka 33
Pradyumna–Śālva Missile-Exchange at Saubha (Āraṇyaka Parva, Adhyāya 18)
न युक्त भवता त्यक्तुं संग्रामं दारुकात्मज । मयि युद्धार्थिनि भूशं स त्वं याहि यतो रणम्,“दारुककुमार! तुझे संग्रामभूमिका परित्याग करना कदापि उचित नहीं था। विशेषत: उस अवस्थामें, जब कि मैं युद्धकी अभिलाषा रखता था। अतः जहाँ युद्ध हो रहा है, वहाँ चल”
na yuktaṁ bhavatā tyaktuṁ saṅgrāmaṁ dārukātmaja | mayi yuddhārthini bhūśaṁ sa tvaṁ yāhi yato raṇam ||
Vāyu disse: “Ó filho de Dāruka, não era correto que abandonasses o campo de batalha, ainda mais quando eu próprio ansiava pelo combate. Portanto, vai imediatamente para onde a luta está acontecendo.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not abandon one’s rightful duty at a critical moment; for a warrior, withdrawing from a just battle out of hesitation is portrayed as improper. The verse frames steadfastness in dharma—especially kṣatriya responsibility—as an ethical imperative.
Vāyu addresses Dāruka’s son, reproaching him for leaving the battlefield and commanding him to return immediately to the place where the fighting is underway, emphasizing that the divine impulse for battle was present.