Shloka 14
सभा पर्व, अध्याय ३७ — युधिष्ठिरस्य भीष्मोपदेशः
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Consultation and Bhīṣma’s Counsel in the Assembly
नृपे च रुक्मिणि श्रेष्ठे एकलव्ये तथैव च । शल्ये मद्राधिपे चैव कथं कृष्णस्त्वयार्चित:
nṛpe ca rukmiṇi śreṣṭhe ekalavye tathaiva ca | śalye madrādhipe caiva kathaṃ kṛṣṇas tvayārcitaḥ ||
„Und da auch der vornehme König Rukmī, Ekalavya, der beste Bogenschütze, und Śalya, der Herr von Madra, anwesend waren: wie konntest du Kṛṣṇa verehren?“
शिशुपाल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds a conflict between worldly criteria of honor (rank, prowess, seniority) and the claim of exceptional worth that justifies supreme reverence. It shows how dharma can be argued through competing standards—social protocol versus perceived intrinsic greatness—setting up the ethical tension that culminates in Śiśupāla’s condemnation and Kṛṣṇa’s response.
During the assembly connected with Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rājasūya, Kṛṣṇa is selected for the highest honor (agrā-pūjā). Śiśupāla objects publicly, naming prominent figures like Rukmī, Ekalavya, and Śalya, and questions how Kṛṣṇa could be worshiped above them, framing the act as a breach of proper royal hierarchy.