Shloka 276
धर्मरहस्योपदेशः
Dharma-rahasya Instruction: Vows, Truth, and Non-injury
उवाच वचन शल्य: सूतपुत्र॑ तथागतम् । अमित शक्तिशाली राधापुत्र कर्णका यह वचन सुनकर राजा शल्यने सूतपुत्रसे उस अवसरके लिये उपयुक्त वचन कहा--
śalya uvāca vacanaṃ sūtaputraṃ tathāgatam | amitaśaktiśālī rādhāputra karṇa—(tad vacanaṃ śrutvā) rājā śalyo ’smin avasare sūtaputrāya yogyam vacanam uvāca ||
Sañjaya sprach: Als König Śalya diese Worte vernommen hatte, erwiderte er Karṇa—dem Sohn eines Wagenlenkers, Rādhās Sohn, mächtig und von unermesslicher Kraft—mit einer Antwort, die der Stunde angemessen war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of timely speech in a crisis: words can steady, correct, or provoke a warrior’s mind, so counsel must be appropriate to the occasion and the listener’s role and temperament.
Sañjaya narrates that after hearing what has been said, King Śalya turns to Karṇa and delivers a response suited to that moment—setting up Śalya’s forthcoming counsel/retort within the battlefield dialogue.