Shloka 26
Book 10, Adhyāya 12: Aśvatthāmā’s Request for the Cakra and the Brahmaśiras Context
य: सदैव मनुष्येषु प्रमाणं परमं गत: । गाण्डीवधन्वा श्वेताश्व: कपिप्रवरकेतन:
yaḥ sadaiva manuṣyeṣu pramāṇaṃ paramaṃ gataḥ | gāṇḍīvadhanvā śvetāśvaḥ kapipravaraketanaḥ ||
Тот, кто среди людей неизменно достигал высшей меры власти и превосходства,—Арджуна, носитель лука Гāндивы (Gāṇḍīva), возничий белых коней и тот, чьё знамя несло образ первейшего из обезьян,—так был вновь призван в память и назван высшим образцом в мире людей.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates Arjuna as a ‘pramāṇa’—a living standard of excellence among humans—using emblematic epithets (Gāṇḍīva, white horses, Hanumān-banner) to signal that true authority is grounded in proven virtue, prowess, and the recognized symbols of righteous power.
Vaiśampāyana identifies Arjuna through his well-known epithets, emphasizing his unmatched stature among men. In the Sauptika context, such identification heightens the contrast between celebrated heroic norms and the grim aftermath of the night-raid episode.