Shloka 20

उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय १४० (कृष्णेन कर्णं प्रति पाण्डवबल-वैशिष्ट्यप्रदर्शनम्) / Udyoga Parva, Chapter 140

Krishna’s appraisal of Pandava advantage and war portents

Devanagari script

मन्त्रस्थ नियम॑ कुर्यस्त्विमत्र मधुसूदन । एतदत्र हित॑ मन्ये सर्व यादवनन्दन

Transliteration

mantrastha niyamaṁ kuryās tv iha atra madhusūdana | etad atra hitaṁ manye sarva yādavanandana ||

Translation

Karna sprach: „O Madhusūdana, wahre die Regel der Verschwiegenheit über diesen vertraulichen Rat—er möge nur bis hierher reichen. O Freude der Yadus, ich halte dies hier für ganz und gar heilsam: Dass das, was zwischen dir und mir im Verborgenen gesprochen wurde, nicht offenbart werde.“

Word by Word

• {'mantrastha': 'situated in counsel

• belonging to a confidential consultation', 'niyamaṁ': 'a restraint

• observance (here: the discipline of secrecy)', 'kuryās': 'you should do/maintain (2nd person singular optative)', 'iha atra': 'here, in this matter/at this point', 'madhusūdana': '‘slayer of Madhu’

• epithet of Kṛṣṇa', 'etat': 'this', 'hitaṁ': 'beneficial

• conducive to welfare', 'manye': 'I think

• I consider', 'sarva': 'entirely

• in every way', 'yādavanandana': '‘delight of the Yadus’

Speaker

कर्ण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Karna
• Krishna (Madhusūdana, Yādavanandana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the ethical discipline of confidentiality in counsel: private deliberations (mantra) should be protected, because discretion can prevent harm, preserve trust, and support prudent decision-making in a volatile political context.

What is happening in the narrative?

Karna addresses Kṛṣṇa after a private exchange, urging him to keep their discussion secret and not to carry it further. Karna frames this restraint as the most beneficial course in the present situation, where disclosure could alter alliances and intensify conflict.