Bhagavad Gita 1.4
Spoken by Sanjaya · Verse 4 of 47
अत्र शूरा महेष्वासा भीमार्जुनसमा युधि। युयुधानो विराटश्च द्रुपदश्च महारथः॥
atra śūrā maheṣvāsā bhīmārjunasamā yudhi / yuyudhāno virāṭaś ca drupadaś ca mahārathaḥ
Duryodhana catalogues the Pandava heroes — naming his fears, one by one.
Word by word (9)
- atra
- — here / in this army
- śūrāḥ
- — heroes / mighty warriors
- mahā-iṣu-āsāḥ
- — great bowmen / masters of the great bow
- bhīma-arjuna-samāḥ
- — equal to Bhima and Arjuna in battle
- yudhi
- — in battle
- yuyudhānaḥ
- — Yuyudhana (Satyaki), Krishna's kinsman
- virāṭaḥ
- — Virata, king who sheltered the Pandavas in exile
- drupadaḥ
- — Drupada, father of Dhrishtadyumna and Draupadi
- mahā-rathaḥ
- — great chariot-warrior (a military rank)
Duryodhana continues: 'In their army there are great warriors — archers as powerful as Bhima and Arjuna themselves: Yuyudhana (Satyaki), Virata, and Drupada — all commanders of great chariots.'
A modern analogy
Before a major negotiation or competition, many people list out the strengths of the opposition — half because it's tactically necessary, half because naming a fear makes it slightly less overwhelming. Duryodhana is doing both.
Take with you
- Naming what we fear — being specific about it — is a healthy first step toward facing it.
- The greatest heroes in any field have those who are 'equal to them' — excellence is never alone.
- Duryodhana respects the Pandava warriors even as he opposes them. Respecting your opponent's strengths is both wisdom and maturity.
Public-domain translations (3) compare all →
Here are heroes, mighty archers, equal in battle to Bhima and Arjuna: Yuyudhana, Virata and Drupada, of the great car. [4]
Yuyudhan, Virata, Drupada, — these and others, mighty bow-men — match for Bhima's self and Arjun. [7]
Here in this army are many heroes, great bowmen equal in battle to Bhima and Arjuna — Yuyudhana, Virata, and Drupada, all great car-warriors. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
More allies enumerated — every hero named is a responsibility Duryodhana must account for.
Having surveyed the enemy, Duryodhana now needs to reassure himself by listing his own assets.
More daivī qualities: ahiṃsā, satya, akrodha, tyāga, śānti, apaiśuna, dayā, aloluptva, mārdava, hrī, acāpala.
Those who respected you will assume you left out of fear — and in their eyes, you will shrink from hero to coward.
No effort on this path is ever wasted — even a little progress protects you from great fear.
Immeasurable anxieties till death, sense-pleasure as the highest value, firmly certain that 'this is all there is.'
Verse 4 of 47 · back to Chapter 1