Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 24
Śalya’s Consecration as Senāpati and Kṛṣṇa’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira (शल्यस्य सेनापत्यभिषेकः)
उवाच प्राञ्जलिभर्भूत्वा द्रोणभीष्मसमं रणे | अयं स काल: सम्प्राप्तो मित्राणां मित्रवत्सल
uvāca prāñjalir bhūtvā droṇabhīṣma-samaṃ raṇe | ayaṃ sa kālaḥ samprāpto mitrāṇāṃ mitra-vatsala ||
เขาประนมมือแล้วกล่าวว่า—“ในศึกนี้เราจักยืนหยัดเสมอด้วยโทรณะและภีษมะ. โอผู้รักมิตร! บัดนี้กาลนั้นมาถึงแล้ว—กาลแห่งความภักดีมั่นคงต่อสหายทั้งหลาย.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical ideal of steadfast loyalty and timely action: when a decisive moment arrives, one should uphold commitments to allies and meet one’s duty with resolve, while still maintaining respectful conduct (prāñjali).
Sañjaya reports that a warrior, after saluting with joined palms, declares readiness to match the prowess of Droṇa and Bhīṣma in battle and asserts that the crucial time has come to act for the sake of friends/allies, addressing someone praised as ‘mitra-vatsala’ (devoted to friends).