Shloka 133
अलर्कोपाख्यानम् — Indriya-Nigraha and Yogic Victory
Mahābhārata 14.30
अन्यान् बाणान् समीक्षस्व यैस्त्वं मां सूदयिष्यसि । जिह्दा बोली--अलर्क! ये बाण मुझे किसी प्रकार नहीं छेद सकते। ये तो तुम्हारे ही मर्मस्थानोंको बींधेंगे। मर्मस्थानोंके बिंध जानेपर तुम्हीं मरोगे। अतः दूसरे प्रकारके बाणोंका प्रबन्ध सोचो
anyān bāṇān samīkṣasva yais tvaṃ māṃ sūdayiṣyasi |
“Isaalang-alang mo ang ibang palaso—yaong makapapatay sa akin nang tunay.” Pagkaraan, nagsalita ang Dila: “Alarka, hindi ako mabubutas ng mga palasong iyan. Sila’y tatama sa sarili mong mga marma, ang mga puntong-buhay; at kapag natamaan ang mga iyon, ikaw ang mamamatay. Kaya magbalak ka ng ibang uri ng palaso, na sa tulong nito’y mapapatay mo ako.”
अलर्क उवाच
Educational Q&A
Acting with anger or ignorance can rebound upon oneself; one must examine one’s means and their consequences. The verse, reinforced by the narrative gloss, warns that misdirected violence harms the aggressor by striking his own ‘vital points’—a moral lesson in discernment and responsibility.
Alarka challenges the opponent to identify arrows that could actually kill. The accompanying explanation states that the current arrows cannot pierce the opponent; instead they will wound Alarka’s own marmas, leading to his death, so he is urged to devise a different means if he truly intends to slay.