Shloka 22

Devanagari script

अथवा निहते पार्थे पाण्डवान्यतमं ततः । स्थापयेद्‌ यदि वार्ष्णेयस्तस्मात्कृष्णो हि हन्यताम्‌,“यदि ऐसा सोचो कि अर्जुनके मारे जानेपर श्रीकृष्ण दूसरे किसी पाण्डवको युद्धके लिये खड़ा कर लेंगे तो श्रीकृष्णको ही मार डालो

Transliteration

athavā nihate pārthe pāṇḍavānyatamaṃ tataḥ | sthāpayet yadi vārṣṇeyas tasmāt kṛṣṇo hi hanyatām ||

Translation

قال سَنْجَايَا: «أو إن كنت تظن أنه إذا قُتل بارثا (أرجونا) فإن كِرِشْنَة من آل فِرِشْنِي سيقيم باندافًا آخر ليواصل القتال—فلأجل ذلك بعينه يجب قتل كِرِشْنَة نفسه.»

Word by Word

अथवाor else

निहतेwhen (he) is slain

पार्थेin/when Arjuna (son of Pṛthā)

पाण्डवान्the Pāṇḍavas

अन्यतमम्some other one (one among others)

ततःthen/thereupon

स्थापयेत्might set up / would appoint

यदिif

वार्ष्णेयःVārṣṇeya (Kṛṣṇa, descendant of Vṛṣṇi)

तस्मात्therefore

कृष्णःKṛṣṇa

हिindeed/for

हन्यताम्let (him) be slain / should be killed

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Arjuna (Pārtha)

Kṛṣṇa (Vārṣṇeya)

Pāṇḍavas

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how, in war, ethical boundaries can be pressured by strategic thinking: eliminating a single fighter may not end resistance if a leader can replace him. It implicitly points to Kṛṣṇa’s pivotal role as strategist and morale-anchor, while also exposing the moral peril of targeting the guiding intellect rather than only battlefield combatants.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a line of reasoning from the battlefield context: even if Arjuna is killed, Kṛṣṇa might rally another Pāṇḍava to continue the war. Therefore, the speaker argues, Kṛṣṇa should be killed to prevent the Pāṇḍavas from regrouping under his direction.