Shloka 15
Abhimanyu’s Śrāddha; Vyāsa’s Assurance of the Unborn Heir (अभिमन्योः श्राद्धं तथा गर्भरक्षणोपदेशः)
स्पर्धते सम रणे नित्यं दुहितु: पुत्रको मम | “मेरी बेटीका वह लाड़ला अभिमन्यु रणभूमिमें सदा द्रोणाचार्य
spardhate sama-raṇe nityaṁ duhituḥ putrako mama | evaṁvidhaṁ bahu tadā vilapantaṁ suduḥkhitam |
Vaiśaṃpāyana sprach: „Der Sohn meiner Tochter war stets begierig, im gerechten Kampf zu ringen. Er besaß den Mut, selbst mit Droṇa, Bhīṣma und Karṇa—dem Ersten unter den Mächtigen—die Waffen zu messen. Kann es sein, dass Droṇa, Karṇa, Kṛpa und andere sich zusammentaten und den Knaben durch Trug erschlugen, sodass er, von Verrat getroffen, nun auf der Erde liegt? Keśava, sage mir alles.“ So klagte er damals lange, überwältigt von schwerem Schmerz.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage contrasts righteous, fair combat (sama-raṇa) with the moral stain of deceitful killing. It highlights how adharma in war—especially collective, treacherous violence against a lone youth—becomes a source of enduring grief and ethical questioning.
Vaiśaṃpāyana narrates a lament in which a grieving speaker recalls Abhimanyu’s fearless readiness to face even the greatest warriors and suspects that senior fighters (Droṇa, Karṇa, Kṛpa and others) may have killed him through stratagem. He appeals to Keśava (Kṛṣṇa) to disclose the truth, and continues lamenting in intense sorrow.