Shloka 243

Devanagari script

अक्षयं क्षपयेत्‌ वक्षित्‌ क्षत्रिय: क्षत्रियर्ष भम्‌ । “नरेश्वर! अपने तेजसे प्रज्वलित होनेवाले क्षत्रिय-शिरोमणि गाण्डीवधारी अविनाशी अर्जुनको कौन क्षत्रिय मार सकता है?

Transliteration

akṣayaṃ kṣapayeta vakṣit kṣatriyaḥ kṣatriyarṣabham | nareśvara! svena tejasā prajvalitaṃ kṣatriya-śiromaṇiṃ gāṇḍīvadhāriṇam avināśinam arjunaṃ kaḥ kṣatriyo hantuṃ śaknoti?

Translation

सञ्जय उवाच—नरेश्वर! स्वतेजसा प्रज्वलन् गाण्डीवधरोऽक्षयः क्षत्रियर्षभः क्षत्रियशिरोमणिरर्जुनः; तं कः क्षत्रियो हन्तुं शक्नुयात्?

Word by Word

अक्षयम्imperishable (one)

क्षपयेत्could destroy / would destroy

वक्षित्said / spoken (one) (i.e., he said)

क्षत्रियःa Kshatriya (warrior)

क्षत्रियर्षभम्the bull among Kshatriyas / best of warriors

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Dhritarashtra (Nareśvara)

Arjuna

Gāṇḍīva

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s ideal of kṣatriya excellence: true martial supremacy is not merely physical strength but a radiance of tejas—disciplined valor, legitimacy, and heroic stature. By calling Arjuna ‘imperishable,’ the text frames him as protected by destiny and merit, warning against reckless overconfidence in war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra, praising Arjuna as the blazing, Gāṇḍīva-bearing champion. The statement functions as a rhetorical challenge: among the assembled warriors, who could realistically defeat such a figure, thereby heightening the tension of the Drona Parva battle narrative.