Shloka 4
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 126 — Kṛṣṇa’s Indictment of Misrule and the Varuṇa Analogy (कृष्णवाक्यं–धर्मपाशदृष्टान्तः)
भवान् क्षत्ता च राजा वाप्याचार्यो वा पितामह: । मामेव परिगर्हन्ते नान्यं कंचन पार्थिवम्
bhavān kṣattā ca rājā vāpy ācāryo vā pitāmahaḥ | mām eva parigarhante nānyaṃ kaṃcana pārthivam ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: „Du, Vidura der Minister, der König (mein Vater), der Lehrer und der Ahn Bhīṣma—ihr alle tadelt nur mich und keinen anderen Herrscher. Ich sehe, dass die Schuld an dem, was sich entfaltet, allein mir zugeschoben wird.“
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
When a crisis grows from deliberate choices, moral responsibility is not diluted by power or status; elders and advisers may rightly hold the principal agent accountable, emphasizing dharma-based accountability in governance.
In the Udyoga Parva’s tense pre-war setting, the speaker reports that key elders—Vidura, the king Dhritarashtra, the teacher Drona, and the grandsire Bhishma—are directing their reproach toward a single person, indicating that they see him as chiefly responsible for the impending calamity.