Shloka 53
Adhyāya 33: Rauhiṇeya (Balarāma) is welcomed and takes his seat to witness the gadā-engagement
साहसं कृतवांस्त्वं तु हानुक्रोशान्नपोत्तम । 'भरतभूषण! अब हमलोग अपना कार्य कैसे सिद्ध कर सकते हैं? नृपश्रेष्ठी आपने दयावश यह दु:साहसपूर्ण कार्य कर डाला है
sāhasaṃ kṛtavāṃs tvaṃ tu hānukrośān nṛpottama | na paśyasi māṃ pāpa gadāyuddhe vyavasthitam | himavacchikharākārāṃ praghṛhya mahatīṃ gadām ||
Sañjaya nói: “Hỡi bậc vương giả tối thượng, ngài đã hành động liều lĩnh vì lòng thương hại đặt nhầm chỗ. Giờ đây làm sao chúng ta hoàn thành được mục đích? Ngươi, kẻ tội lỗi, chẳng thấy ta đang đứng sẵn cho cuộc đấu chùy sao—tay cầm cây chùy khổng lồ, sừng sững như đỉnh Hi-mã-lạp-sơn?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between compassion and duty in a war setting: pity that disrupts rightful strategy or agreed combat can become ‘misplaced compassion’ and lead to harmful consequences. It also underscores the warrior ethic of readiness and accountability in battle.
Sanjaya reports a heated rebuke: someone addresses a king as having committed a reckless act out of pity, and then points to his own readiness for a mace-duel—standing armed with a huge mace likened to a Himalayan peak—implying that the king’s action has jeopardized their objective in the ongoing conflict.