Shloka 63

Yudhiṣṭhira–Droṇa Saṃgrāma

Engagement and Countermeasures

Devanagari script

नमो विश्वस्य पतये महतां पतये नम: । नमः सहस्रशिरसे सहस्रभुजमृत्यवे

Transliteration

namo viśvasya pataye mahatāṁ pataye namaḥ | namaḥ sahasraśirase sahasrabhuja-mṛtyave ||

Translation

సర్వ విశ్వాధిపతికి నమస్కారం; మహనీయులకూ అధిపతియైనవారికి నమస్కారం. సహస్రశిరుడికి నమస్కారం; సహస్రభుజములే మృత్యువైనవారికి నమస్కారం.

Word by Word

नमःsalutation; homage

विश्वस्यof the universe; of all

पतयेto the lord/master

महताम्of the great (ones)

पतयेto the lord/master

नमःsalutation; homage

सहस्रशिरसेto the thousand-headed one

सहस्रभुजमृत्यवेto the death (destroyer) with a thousand arms

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Viśvasya Pati (Lord of the universe)

Mahatāṁ Pati (Lord of the great)

Sahasraśiras (Thousand-headed One)

Sahasrabhuja Mṛtyu (Thousand-armed Death)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches reverence for the supreme cosmic sovereignty: the Lord who rules the universe and even the mighty, and who appears as Death in battle. It places human power and violence under a higher moral-metaphysical reality, encouraging humility and awareness of inevitability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya, narrating the battlefield events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, offers a solemn invocation. As the war reaches intense and deadly moments, he acknowledges the divine as the ultimate master and as the force of death that overtakes warriors, setting a grave tone for the events being described.