शकुनिर् उवाच
धनंजयो वासुदेवो भीमसेनो युधिष्ठिरः ॥
नकुलः सहदेवश् च द्रुपदश् च सहात्मजैः ॥
नैते युधि बलाज् जेतुं शक्याः सुरगणैर् अपि ॥
महारथा महेष्वासाः कृतास्त्रा युद्धदुर्मदाः ॥
अहं तु तद् विजानामि विजेतुं येन शक्यते ॥
युधिष्ठिरं स्वयं राजंस् तन् निबोध जुषस्व च ॥
śakunir uvāca
dhanaṃjayo vāsudevo bhīmaseno yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca drupadaś ca sahātmajaiḥ ||
naite yudhi balāj jetuṃ śakyāḥ suragaṇair api ||
mahārathā maheṣvāsāḥ kṛtāstrā yuddhadurmadāḥ ||
ahaṃ tu tad vijānāmi vijetuṃ yena śakyate ||
yudhiṣṭhiraṃ svayaṃ rājaṃs tan nibodha juṣasva ca ||
"Dhananjaya, Vasudeva, Bhimasena, Yudhishthira, Nakula, Sahadeva and Drupada with his sons -- these cannot be overcome by force in battle even by hosts of gods: great chariot-warriors, great archers, skilled in weapons, furious in battle. But I know that by which Yudhishthira himself can be conquered, O king; learn this and accept it."
8147aa5dbe10 · published Jul 16, 2026, 3:49:22 PM UTC
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Shakuni himself admits: the Pandavas together with Vasudeva 'cannot be overcome even by hosts of gods.' This forced confession is telling: evil, confronted with those protected by the Lord, is powerless in honest battle -- and therefore seeks deceit. The verse teaches that falsehood, unable to win openly, inevitably resorts to cunning: where there is no strength to overcome the righteous, schemes are devised to snare them by guile. And this very 'but I know another way' is an admission of defeat in advance: whoever dares not meet the enemy face to face is already defeated in spirit. The protection of the devotee is such that evil is forced to lay down the sword and take up deceit -- and deceit does not last long before the face of the Lord.