Shloka 27

Dhṛtarāṣṭra–Duryodhana Saṃvāda on Restraint and Rājānīti

Chapter 50

Devanagari script

तत्र सम यदि शक्त: स्यां पातये5हं वृकोदरम्‌ | यदि कुर्या समारम्भं भीम॑ हन्तुं नराधिप,उस समय वहाँ यदि मैं समर्थ होता तो भीमसेनको वहीं मार गिराता। राजन! यदि मैं भीमसेनको मारनेका उद्योग करता तो मेरी भी शिशुपालकी-सी ही दशा हो जाती; इसमें संशय नहीं है। भारत! शत्रुके द्वारा किया हुआ उपहास मुझे दग्ध किये देता है

Transliteration

tatra sam yadi śaktaḥ syāṃ pātaye'haṃ vṛkodaram | yadi kuryāṃ samārambhaṃ bhīmaṃ hantuṃ narādhipa ||

Translation

Duryodhana sprach: „Dort und damals—wäre ich dazu imstande gewesen—hätte ich Vṛkodara (Bhīma) zu Boden geschlagen. Doch, o König, wenn ich den Versuch unternähme, Bhīma zu töten, träfe mich dasselbe Schicksal wie Śiśupāla—daran besteht kein Zweifel. O Bhārata, der Spott des Feindes brennt in mir.“

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'tatra', 'definition': 'there, in that place'}, {'term': 'sam (samaṃ)', 'definition': 'then/thereupon

• also ‘equally, directly’ (contextual adverb)'}, {'term': 'yadi', 'definition': 'if'}, {'term': 'śaktaḥ', 'definition': 'able, capable, competent'}, {'term': 'syām', 'definition': 'I would be (optative of √as)'}, {'term': 'pātaye (pātayeyam)', 'definition': 'I would cause to fall, strike down (causative/optative sense)'}, {'term': 'aham', 'definition': 'I'}, {'term': 'vṛkodaram', 'definition': 'Vṛkodara, ‘wolf-bellied’

• epithet of Bhīma'}, {'term': 'samārambham', 'definition': 'undertaking, enterprise, attempt, aggressive initiative'}, {'term': 'bhīmam', 'definition': 'Bhīma (also ‘terrible’ as an adjective)'}, {'term': 'hantum', 'definition': 'to kill (infinitive of √han)'}, {'term': 'narādhipa', 'definition': 'O ruler of men, O king'}]

Speaker

दुर्योधन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Duryodhana
• Bhima (Vrikodara)
• Shishupala
• Naradhipa (the king addressed)
• Bharata (the one addressed / lineage epithet)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Unchecked anger and wounded pride can drive one toward rash violence, yet awareness of consequences (social, political, and moral) can restrain action. The verse highlights how humiliation becomes an inner fire that shapes unethical intentions even when outward action is checked.

What is happening in the narrative?

Duryodhana confesses that he wanted to kill Bhīma on the spot, but he believes that attempting it would bring immediate ruin upon himself—like Śiśupāla’s downfall. He admits that the enemy’s ridicule torments him, revealing the psychological pressure behind his hostility toward the Pāṇḍavas.