Shloka 2
प्राग्ज्योतिषे वज्रदत्त-धनंजय-समागमः
Vajradatta Confronts Dhanaṃjaya at Prāgjyotiṣa
ते समाज्ञाय सम्प्राप्तं यज्ञियं तुरगोत्तमम् । विषयान्तं ततो वीरा दंशिता: पर्यवारयन्
te samājñāya samprāptaṃ yajñiyaṃ turagottamam | viṣayāntaṃ tato vīrā daṃśitāḥ paryavārayan ||
Sinabi ni Vaiśampāyana: Nang mabalitaan nilang ang mainam na kabayong panghandog ay dumating na sa hangganan ng kanilang lupain, ang mga mandirigma—nakasuot ng baluti at ganap ang sandata—ay pumaligid dito sa lahat ng panig. Pagkaligid sa kabayo, sinimulan nilang agawin ito, at sa gayon ay hinahamon ang ritwal at ang kapangyarihang ipinahahayag nito.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A consecrated act like the Aśvamedha is not merely ritual; it asserts lawful sovereignty. To obstruct or seize the sacrificial horse is to contest that claim, turning a religious procession into a dharma-laden political and ethical confrontation.
The sacrificial horse reaches the border of another territory. Local warriors, fully armed, surround it and begin efforts to capture it—an action that signals resistance to the Aśvamedha and invites a challenge from the rite’s protectors.