Adhyāya 41 — Kṛṣṇa’s Battlefield Briefing and the Renewal of the Great Engagement
शत्रु: शदे: शासतेर्वा श्यतेर्वा शणातेर्वा श्वसते: सीदते्वा
śatruḥ śadeḥ śāsatervā śyatervā śaṇātervā śvasateḥ sīdatetvā
سنجے نے کہا—‘شترُو’ (دشمن) کے کئی معنی سمجھے جاتے ہیں: جو نقصان پہنچائے؛ جو حکم چلائے یا سزا دے؛ جو چھیدے یا ضرب لگائے؛ جو ہلاک کرے؛ جو گویا نگلنے کے لیے سانس چھوڑے؛ یا جو دوسرے کو رنج و کرب میں ڈبو دے۔
संजय उवाच
The verse frames ‘enemy’ not merely as a battlefield opponent but as anyone who causes harm, subjugation, wounding, or inner collapse—suggesting an ethical lens where enmity is defined by actions and effects rather than by labels alone.
Sañjaya offers a lexical/interpretive clarification of the term ‘śatru’ through multiple root-derivations, sharpening how the listener should understand ‘enemy’ within the war narrative and its moral stakes.