Shloka 19
Rājagṛhe Magadheśvarasya yuddhāhvānam — Arjunena saṃyamaḥ
The Rājagṛha Challenge and Arjuna’s Restraint
तस्मादपि स कौरव्य गन्धारविषयं हय: । विचचार यथाकामं कौन्तेयानुगतस्तदा,कुरुनन्दन! वहाँसे भी वह घोड़ा गान्धारदेशमें जाकर इच्छानुसार विचरने लगा। कुन्तीनन्दन अर्जुन भी उसके पीछे-पीछे वहीं जा पहुँचे
tasmād api sa kauravya gandhāraviṣayaṃ hayaḥ | vicacāra yathākāmaṃ kaunteyānugatas tadā ||
毗湿摩波耶那说：从那里起，噢，库鲁后裔，那匹祭马又进入犍陀罗之境，随意游行。其时，昆蒂之子阿周那紧随其后，也抵达了那片土地。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores royal dharma after the war: sovereignty is re-established not merely by force but through a sanctioned rite (Aśvamedha) in which the horse’s free roaming symbolizes lawful claim, while the king’s champion (Arjuna) upholds order by following and responding to challenges.
During Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha, the consecrated horse moves onward into Gandhāra, wandering freely. Arjuna, assigned as its protector and enforcer of the rite’s authority, follows it into that region.