Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 6

Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)

Devanagari script

तथा कृष्णौ महेष्वासौ वृषभौ सर्वधन्विनाम्‌

Transliteration

tathā kṛṣṇau maheṣvāsau vṛṣabhau sarvadhanvinām

Translation

Sanjaya thưa: Cũng như thế, hai vị Krishna—những cung thủ hùng mạnh—nổi bật là bậc đứng đầu trong mọi tay cung, như đôi bò mộng dẫn đàn, hiện thân cho võ nghệ vô song giữa cơn bão chiến tranh đang cuộn trào.

Word by Word

• तथा: thus; likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• कृष्णौ: the two Krishnas (Krishna and Arjuna)
• कृष्णौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्ण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• महेष्वासौ: the two great archers
• महेष्वासौ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महेष्वास
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• वृषभौ: the two bulls; the foremost two
• वृषभौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृषभ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• सर्वधन्विनाम्: of all archers
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वधन्विन्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• the two Krishnas (Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights exemplary excellence joined with rightful purpose: true leaders in a dharma-oriented conflict are those whose skill and steadiness set the standard for others, not merely those who wield power.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya, narrating the battlefield events to Dhritarashtra, praises the preeminence of the two Krishnas—Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna—describing them as supreme among archers, using the metaphor of leading bulls to convey dominance and distinction.