Shloka 10
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय १२५: दुर्योधनस्य प्रत्युत्तरम्
Duryodhana’s Reply in the Kuru Assembly
चन्दनागुरुदिग्धेषु हारनिष्कधरेषु च | नोर:सु यावद् योधानां महेष्वासैर्महेषव:
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
candanāgurudigdheṣu hāra-niṣka-dhareṣu ca |
no'raḥsu yāvad yodhānāṃ maheṣvāsair maheṣavaḥ ||
毗湿摩波耶那说道：“只要敌方那些强弓大射——精通兵器之学，发矢迅疾，远的目标亦无不中——尚未将巨箭如雨倾泻在你军战士的胸膛上；那胸膛涂以檀香与沉香，佩以项链与金饰；在此之前，你就当连战争之念也一并舍弃。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames war as a grave, irreversible ordeal: before the battlefield turns perfumed, ornamented bodies into targets for lethal volleys, one should renounce the impulse toward war. It underscores prudence and the ethical weight of initiating violence.
In Vaiśampāyana’s narration, a warning is voiced about the imminent reality of battle: enemy master-archers will soon rain heavy arrows upon the chests of richly adorned warriors. The statement functions as counsel to abandon war while there is still time.