Shloka 7
Traigarta Attempt to Seize the Aśvamedha Horse; Arjuna’s Restraint and Tactical Victory
श्वेताश्वः कृष्णसारं तं ससाराश्च धनंजय: । विधिवत् पृथिवीपाल धर्मराजस्य शासनात्,भूपाल जनमेजय! श्वेत घोड़ेवाले अर्जुनने धर्मराजकी आज्ञासे उस यज्ञसम्बन्धी अश्वका विधिपूर्वक अनुसरण किया
śvetāśvaḥ kṛṣṇasāraṃ taṃ sasārāś ca dhanaṃjayaḥ | vidhivat pṛthivīpāla dharmarājasya śāsanāt, bhūpāla janamejaya |
వైశంపాయనుడు పలికెను—ఓ భూపాల జనమేజయా! ధర్మరాజ యుధిష్ఠిరుని ఆజ్ఞచే శ్వేతాశ్వారూఢుడైన ధనంజయ అర్జునుడు విధివిధానములతో ఆ యజ్ఞాశ్వాన్ని అనుసరించి బయలుదేరెను.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma expressed as disciplined adherence to rightful command and proper procedure: Arjuna acts not from personal impulse but under Dharmarāja’s order, and he performs the task 'vidhivat'—with due regard for prescribed norms—showing that power and action are to be governed by righteous authority and ritual-ethical order.
During the Aśvamedha preparations, Arjuna sets out—mounted on a white horse—to follow and protect the consecrated sacrificial horse as it roams, doing so in the proper manner and under Yudhiṣṭhira’s instruction, while Vaiśaṃpāyana narrates this to King Janamejaya.