वैशंपायन उवाच
अजिनानि विधुन्वन्तः करकांश् च द्विजर्षभाः ॥
ऊचुस् तं भीर् न कर्तव्या वयं योत्स्यामहे परान् ॥
तान् एवं वदतो विप्रान् अर्जुनः प्रहसन्न् इव ॥
उवाच प्रेक्षका भूत्वा यूयं तिष्ठत पार्श्वतः ॥
अहम् एनान् अजिह्माग्रैः शतशो विकिरञ् शरैः ॥
वारयिष्यामि संक्रुद्धान् मन्त्रैर् आशीविषान् इव ॥
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
ajināni vidhunvantaḥ karakāṃś ca dvijarṣabhāḥ ||
ūcus taṃ bhīr na kartavyā vayaṃ yotsyāmahe parān ||
tān evaṃ vadato viprān arjunaḥ prahasann iva ||
uvāca prekṣakā bhūtvā yūyaṃ tiṣṭhata pārśvataḥ ||
aham enān ajihmāgraiḥ śataśo vikirañ śaraiḥ ||
vārayiṣyāmi saṃkruddhān mantrair āśīviṣān iva ||
Vaishampayana said: "Shaking their deerskins and water-jars, the bull-like brahmins said to him: 'There is no need for fear; we will fight the enemies!' But Arjuna, as if smiling, said to those brahmins: 'Become spectators, stand aside; I will ward off these enraged ones with hundreds of straight-tipped arrows, as one wards off venomous serpents with mantras.'"
efb442213d0c · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:44:41 PM UTC
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Here even the gentle brahmins show their readiness to stand for what is right. It is telling that peaceful ascetics, brandishing their meager belongings, rush to defend one whom they take for their own -- gratitude and kinship stir even those unpracticed in war. Telling too is Arjuna's composure: smiling, he sets them apart from danger -- the strong does not risk the weak, but meets the enemy alone. Here is both the courage of simple hearts and the carefulness of a hero. Thus the verse shows that a true warrior shields the innocent by taking the battle upon himself.