Mahabharata 9.31.71 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 31, Shloka 71
गदायुद्धप्रतिज्ञा — The Vow and Terms of the Mace Duel
आशीविषैरविषिश्षापि जले चापि प्रवेशनै: । त्वया विनिकृता राजन् राज्यस्य हरणेन च
āśīviṣair aviṣiṣṭhāpi jale cāpi praveśanaiḥ | tvayā vinikṛtā rājan rājyasya haraṇena ca
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „O König, du hast mir Unrecht getan—mit Mitteln, so tödlich wie giftige Schlangen, ja sogar indem du mich in die Wasser treiben ließest, und auch durch die Wegnahme meines Reiches. Deine Taten wirkten wie Gift: Sie raubten mir, was mir rechtmäßig zustand, und stürzten mich in Gefahr.“
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames political dispossession and treacherous coercion as morally equivalent to lethal violence: taking a rightful kingdom through deceit is an ethical injury as grave as poisoning or forcing someone into deadly danger.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a king and accuses him of having wronged him through perilous, coercive acts and, above all, by seizing his kingdom—highlighting the injustice that helped drive the conflict.
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