Shloka 65
Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
उलूक मद्वचो ब्रूहि असकृद्धीमसेनकम् | विराटनगरे पार्थ यस्त्वं सूदो हा भू: पुरा
ulūka madvaco brūhi asakṛddhīmasenakam | virāṭanagare pārtha yastvaṃ sūdo hā bhūḥ purā
சஞ்சயன் கூறினான்—“உலூகா! என் சொற்களை மீண்டும் மீண்டும் பீமசேனனிடம் சொல். மேலும் பார்த்தனிடமும் நினைவூட்டு—‘விராடநகரில் நீ ஒருகாலத்தில் சூதன் (தேரோட்டி) ஆனாய்—அய்யோ!’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how speech can be weaponized: recalling past hardship or socially “humiliating” roles is used to provoke pride and anger. Ethically, it highlights the contrast between dharmic restraint (enduring concealment for a higher purpose) and adharma-driven provocation (stirring conflict through insult).
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war diplomacy, a hostile message is being relayed through Ulūka. The speaker instructs him to repeatedly deliver taunts to Bhīma and Arjuna, specifically invoking the Pāṇḍavas’ time in Virāṭa’s city during their incognito exile, aiming to inflame them and harden the path to war.