Shloka 31

अध्याय ९ — धृतराष्ट्रस्य युधिष्ठिरं प्रति राजनित्युपदेशः

Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Counsel on Royal Policy to Yudhiṣṭhira

Devanagari script

युयुधानेन वीरेण धृष्टद्युम्नेन चैव ह । चतुर्भि: पाण्डुपुत्रैश्न भीमार्जुनयमैस्तथा

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca |

yuyudhānena vīreṇa dhṛṣṭadyumnena caiva ha |

catūrbhiḥ pāṇḍuputraiś ca bhīmārjunayamaiḥ tathā ||

Translation

毗湿摩波罗衍那说道：“正是凭着勇士优优陀那（萨底耶吉）与德里什塔丢姆那，又凭般度的四子——毗摩、阿周那以及那对双生子（那俱罗与娑诃提婆）——那场战争的巨大杀戮才得以造成。”

Word by Word

• युयुधानेन: by Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki)
• युयुधानेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: युयुधान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• वीरेण: by the hero/brave one
• वीरेण: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• धृष्टद्युम्नेन: by Dhṛṣṭadyumna
• धृष्टद्युम्नेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धृष्टद्युम्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एव: indeed/just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• ह: indeed (emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह

• चतुर्भिः: by four
• चतुर्भिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• पाण्डुपुत्रैः: by the sons of Pāṇḍu
• पाण्डुपुत्रैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डुपुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• भीम: Bhīma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Stem (in compound), —

• अर्जुन: Arjuna
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्जुन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Stem (in compound), —

• यमैः: by the twins (Nakula and Sahadeva)
• यमैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• तथा: thus/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki)
• Dhṛṣṭadyumna
• Pāṇḍuputras (sons of Pāṇḍu)
• Bhīma
• Arjuna
• Nakula
• Sahadeva

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse functions as a moral recollection: even immense military power collapses quickly when war is unleashed. It highlights the ethical weight of kṣatriya action—heroism and duty on the battlefield—while implicitly warning that adharma-driven conflict leads to rapid, total destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana is summarizing the principal agents of destruction in the Kurukṣetra war: Sātyaki, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, and the four Pāṇḍava brothers (Bhīma, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva). In the surrounding account (as reflected in the received Gītā Press context), this is tied to the broader remembrance that vast armies and famed champions were annihilated within eighteen days.