Shloka 51

गौरुडव्यूह-रचना तथा अर्धचन्द्र-प्रत्यव्यूह

Garuḍa Array and the Ardhacandra Counter-Formation

Devanagari script

अयुध्येतां महात्मानौ यथोभौ वृत्रवासवौ । अन्योन्यं तु महाराज परस्परवधैषिणौ

Transliteration

ayudhyetāṁ mahātmānau yathobhau vṛtrāvāsavau | anyonyaṁ tu mahārāja parasparavadhaiṣiṇau ||

Translation

Sañjaya thưa: “Tâu Đại vương, hai bậc anh hùng tâm hồn cao cả ấy giao chiến như Vṛtra và Vāsava (Indra)—áp sát nhau với ý định sát hại, mỗi người đều tìm cái chết của đối phương.”

Word by Word

• अयुध्येताम्: they two fought
• अयुध्येताम्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: युध्
• Form: लङ् (imperfect), आत्मनेपद, प्रथम, द्विवचन

• महात्मानौ: the two great-souled ones
• महात्मानौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महात्मन्
• Form: पुं, प्रथमा, द्विवचन

• यथा: as, like
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा

• उभौ: both (of them)
• उभौ: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: उभ
• Form: पुं, प्रथमा, द्विवचन

• वृत्रवासवौ: Vṛtra and Vāsava (Indra)
• वृत्रवासवौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृत्र-वासव
• Form: पुं, प्रथमा, द्विवचन

• अन्योन्यम्: mutually, each other
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अन्योन्य

• तु: but, indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: पुं, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• परस्परवधैषिणौ: desiring each other's death
• परस्परवधैषिणौ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परस्पर-वध-एषिन्
• Form: पुं, प्रथमा, द्विवचन

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Vṛtra
• Indra (Vāsava)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the tragic intensity of kṣatriya warfare: even ‘great-souled’ warriors can become mutually death-seeking when bound by battle-duty and rivalry, highlighting how dharma in war can coexist with destructive intent.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that two principal warriors have closed in and are fighting fiercely, compared to the mythic clash of Indra and Vṛtra, emphasizing a duel of near-cosmic ferocity.