ततो ऽभिमन्युः प्रहसन् सारथिं वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् ॥
सारथे को न्व् अयं द्रोणः समग्रं क्षत्रम् एव वा ॥
ऐरावतगतं शक्रं सहामरगणैर् अहम् ॥
योधयेयं रणमुखे न मे क्षत्रे ऽद्य विस्मयः ॥
न ममैतद् द्विषत्सैन्यं कलाम् अर्हति षोडशीम् ॥
अपि विश्वजितं विष्णुं मातुलं प्राप्य सूतज ॥
पितरं चार्जुनं संख्ये न भीर् माम् उपयास्यति ॥
tato 'bhimanyuḥ prahasan sārathiṃ vākyam abravīt ||
sārathe ko nv ayaṃ droṇaḥ samagraṃ kṣatram eva vā ||
airāvatagataṃ śakraṃ sahāmaragaṇair aham ||
yodhayeyaṃ raṇamukhe na me kṣatre 'dya vismayaḥ ||
na mamaitad dviṣatsainyaṃ kalām arhati ṣoḍaśīm ||
api viśvajitaṃ viṣṇuṃ mātulaṃ prāpya sūtaja ||
pitaraṃ cārjunaṃ saṃkhye na bhīr mām upayāsyati ||
Then Abhimanyu, laughing, spoke this word to the charioteer: «O charioteer, who then is this Drona, or even the whole kshatriya order? I would fight even Shakra himself, seated upon Airavata, together with the hosts of gods, at the forefront of battle; I have no timidity now before the kshatriya order. Having the all-conquering Vishnu [Krishna] as my maternal uncle, O son of a suta, and Arjuna as my father in battle, fear will not overtake me.»
cb5d2e3188b4 · publicado 19 jul 2026, 15:22:09 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
Abhimanyu's fearlessness is rooted not in self-conceit but in reliance on those dear to him: 'having Vishnu as uncle and Arjuna as father, fear will not overtake me.' It is telling that he names Krishna first of all — 'the all-conquering Vishnu': true fearlessness is born of closeness to God. And yet in this youthful daring — 'I would fight even Indra with the gods' — there sounds a recklessness that heeds no warning. The verse teaches that true fearlessness is fed not by pride but by trust in the Supreme and in those who love us; that closeness to the Lord banishes fear more surely than any strength; but also that courage not tempered by prudence, however noble its source, easily crosses the line beyond which boldness becomes carelessness — and the youth, trusting in his father and uncle, forgets that neither is beside him now.