Mahabharata · 7.156.1
॥
Devanāgarī
अर्जुन उवाच
कथम् अस्मद्धितार्थं ते कैश् च योगैर् जनार्दन ॥
जरासंधप्रभृतयो घातिताः पृथिवीष्वराः ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
arjuna uvāca
katham asmaddhitārthaṃ te kaiś ca yogair janārdana ||
jarāsaṃdhaprabhṛtayo ghātitāḥ pṛthivīṣvarāḥ ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
कथम् अस्मद्धितार्थम् तेkatham asmaddhitārtham teas [for] our benefit by your; how, for our benefit, by your
कैः च योगैः जनार्दनkaiḥ ca yogaiḥ janārdanaand by what means, Janardana; and by what means, O Janardana
जरासंधप्रभृतयःjarāsaṃdhaprabhṛtayaḥJarasandha and others; Jarasandha and others
घातिताः पृथिवीष्वराःghātitāḥ pṛthivīṣvarāḥstruck down, lords of the earth; struck down, lords of the earth
Translation
"How, for our benefit, by your means, and by what means, O Janardana, were Jarasandha and the other lords of the earth struck down?"
Version
68a8e59bbca7 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:58:11 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Arjuna asks about the means by which formidable rulers were overthrown: he wants to understand not the outcome but the method. It is significant that the question is directed at the design, not at the luck of it. This verse teaches that a mature mind seeks behind events their cause and arrangement: knowing how something was achieved matters more than knowing that it was achieved; and one who searches out the method learns from providence rather than marveling at it blindly.