Shloka 34
उलूकदूतवाक्यम् / Ulūka’s Message to the Pāṇḍavas
कथमस्मद्विधो ब्रूयाद् भीतो5स्मीति यशोहरम् । वचन नरशार्दूल वज्जायुधमपि स्वयम्,“मैंने युद्धमें सफलताके लिये रुद्र, इन्द्र, यम, कुबेर, वरुण, अग्नि, कृपाचार्य, द्रोणाचार्य तथा भगवान् श्रीकृष्णकी आराधना की है। मैं तेजस्वी, दृढ़ एवं दिव्य गाण्डीव धनुष धारण करता हूँ। मेरे पास अक्षय बाणोंसे भरे हुए तरकस मौजूद हैं और दिव्यास्त्रोंके ज्ञानसे मेरी शक्ति बढ़ी हुई है। नरश्रेष्ठ! फिर मेरे-जैसा पुरुष साक्षात् वज्रधारी इन्द्रके सामने भी “मैं डरा हुआ हूँ" यह सुयशका नाश करनेवाला वचन कैसे कह सकता है?
katham asmad-vidho brūyād bhīto 'smīti yaśo-haram | vacanaṁ nara-śārdūla vajrāyudham api svayam ||
Ôi hổ tướng giữa loài người, làm sao kẻ như ta có thể thốt lời cướp mất danh dự: “Ta sợ hãi”—dẫu ngay trước mặt chính Indra, đấng cầm lôi chùy?
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A warrior’s public speech must align with dharma and honor: admitting fear in a way that undermines courage and reputation is portrayed as ethically and socially corrosive, especially for one who has prepared through discipline, devotion, and mastery of arms.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war context, the speaker (as reported by Vaiśampāyana) voices a heroic resolve: having worshipped major deities and revered teachers, and possessing the divine Gāṇḍīva with inexhaustible arrows and knowledge of celestial weapons, he insists he cannot utter “I am afraid,” even before Indra himself.