Shloka 18

Rājagṛhe Magadheśvarasya yuddhāhvānam — Arjunena saṃyamaḥ

The Rājagṛha Challenge and Arjuna’s Restraint

Devanagari script

।/ ९०७)... 2 5 हे हे, )0९ (हा ४ 90%) | हि 5) 9/ के ऐडल+- 4 7.0] ०४४ |] | पे ये प्री हक | कन्न 52६ १6 ,. 0१३ 0, >> #. ४ कैीडाी [१ ज २५9-*। सन्नी ततः स पश्चिम देशं समुद्रस्य तदा हयः । क्रमेण व्यचरत्‌ स्फीतं तत: पठ्चनदं ययौ,वहाँसे पश्चिम समुद्रके तटवर्ती देशोंमें विचरता हुआ वह घोड़ा क्रमश: आगे बढ़ने लगा और समृद्धिशाली पञ्चनद प्रदेशमें जा पहुँचा

Transliteration

sa nītas tataḥ sa paścima-deśaṃ samudrasya tadā hayaḥ | krameṇa vyacarat sphītaṃ tataḥ pañcanadaṃ yayau ||

Translation

அப்போது அந்த யாகக் குதிரை கடற்கரையோரமான மேற்கு நாடுகளில் உலாவத் தொடங்கியது. படிப்படியாக வளமிகு பகுதிகளைச் சுற்றி, பின்னர் பஞ்சநத நாட்டை அடைந்தது.

Word by Word

• {'saḥ': 'he/that (referring to the horse)', 'nītaḥ': 'led, guided, conducted', 'tataḥ': 'then

• thereafter', 'paścima-deśam': 'the western country/region (accusative singular)', 'samudrasya': 'of the ocean/sea (genitive singular)', 'tadā': 'at that time', 'hayaḥ': 'horse (especially a noble/ritual horse)', 'krameṇa': 'in sequence

• step by step', 'vyacarat': 'wandered, roamed, moved about', 'sphītam': 'prosperous, flourishing, abundant', 'pañcanadam': 'Pañcanada, the land of the five rivers', 'yayau': 'went, proceeded, reached'}

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Aśvamedha horse (hayaḥ)
• Western lands (paścima-deśa)
• Ocean/sea (samudra)
• Pañcanada (land of five rivers)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores orderly, legitimate expansion under dharma: the sacrificial horse moves unhindered through regions, implying recognized authority and the ethical ideal that royal power should proceed in a regulated, ritually sanctioned manner rather than by arbitrary force.

What is happening in the narrative?

The Aśvamedha horse, being led onward, roams the western coastal regions by the sea and then, progressing gradually, arrives in the prosperous Pañcanada country—marking the continuing course of the sacrifice’s ceremonial journey.