Shloka 126
Adhyāya 160: Arjuna’s Envoy-Message—Critique of Borrowed Valor and Pre-dawn Mobilization
एवं कत्थसि कौन्तेय अकत्थन् पुरुषो भव | 'युद्धक्षेत्रमें भीष्मका सामना किये बिना ही तुम क्यों अपनी झूठी प्रशंसा करते हो? कुन्तीनन्दन! जैसे कोई अशक्त एवं मन्दबुद्धि पुरुष गन्धमादन पर्वतपर चढ़नेकी इच्छा करे
evaṁ katthasi kaunteya akatthan puruṣo bhava |
Tinukso ni Ulūka ang anak ni Kuntī: “Bakit ka nagyayabang nang ganyan? Huwag kang maging lalaking salita lamang—maging lalaki sa gawa. Kung tunay mong inaangkin ang kabayanihan, patunayan mo sa pagharap kay Bhīṣma sa larangan ng digmaan, hindi sa pagpupuri sa sarili mula sa ligtas na lugar.” Layunin ng pananalitang ito na magpasiklab ng hiya at galit, upang itulak ang kalaban sa padalus-dalos na kilos at ilayo sa maingat na dharma.
उलूक उवाच
Educational Q&A
True courage is shown through action and restraint, not self-praise. The verse contrasts empty boasting with the ideal of quiet, proven valor—an ethical reminder that honor must be earned, not proclaimed.
Ulūka, acting as a hostile messenger, provokes a Pāṇḍava by mocking his claims of heroism and urging him to face Bhīṣma directly. It is a deliberate taunt meant to destabilize the opponent’s judgment before war.