Mahabharata 9.7.42 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 7, Shloka 42
Śalya Installed as Commander; Coalition Agreement and Battle Arrays (शल्यसेनापत्यारोहणं व्यूहवर्णनं च)
एतावदुकक््त्वा वचनं केशव: परवीरहा । जगाम शिबिरं सायं पूज्यमानो5थ पाण्डवै:
sañjaya uvāca |
etāvad uktvā vacanaṃ keśavaḥ paravīrahā |
jagāma śibiraṃ sāyaṃ pūjyamāno 'tha pāṇḍavaiḥ |
iti satyaṃ bravīmy eṣa duryodhana na saṃśayaḥ |
एतावदुक्त्वा वचनं केशवः परवीरहा । जगाम शिबिरं सायं पूज्यमानोऽथ पाण्डवैः ॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how declarations of ‘truth’ and ‘no doubt’ function rhetorically in wartime—projecting resolve and authority—while the epic’s ethical frame invites the listener to weigh such certainty against dharma, humility, and the unpredictable moral cost of conflict.
Sanjaya narrates that Krishna (Keshava), after delivering his statement, departs at evening to his camp, having been honored by the Pandavas; the line ‘I speak the truth… no doubt’ serves as the concluding emphasis of the preceding speech.
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