Shloka 9
Adhyāya 41 — Kṛṣṇa’s Battlefield Briefing and the Renewal of the Great Engagement
अन्यत्र तस्मात् तव मृत्युकाला- दब्राद्माणे ब्रह्म न हि ध्रुवं स्यात् । तदद्य पर्याप्तमतीव चास्त्र- मस्मिन् संग्रामे तुमुलेडतीव भीमे
sañjaya uvāca |
anyatra tasmāt tava mṛtyu-kālād abrāhmaṇe brahma na hi dhruvaṁ syāt |
tad adya paryāptam atīva cāstram asmin saṅgrāme tumule ’tīva bhīme ||
मृत्युकालं विना तवायमस्त्रः कदाचित् कार्यं करिष्यति; अब्राह्मणे हि ब्रह्मास्त्रं नित्यं न ध्रुवं तिष्ठति। अद्य तु तुमुलेऽस्मिन् भीमे संग्रामे पर्याप्तमेव भवेत्।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Extraordinary power (like the Brahmāstra) is not merely a tool of victory; it demands inner qualification and restraint. The verse links efficacy and stability of such a weapon to adhikāra (fitness), implying that without the requisite discipline, even supreme force is unreliable and ethically perilous.
Sañjaya reports a warning/assessment about the Brahmāstra: apart from the destined moment of death, it may help at other times, yet it does not remain firmly ‘established’ in a non-brāhmaṇa. Still, in the present terrifying, chaotic battle, it is said to be sufficient for the immediate need.