Shloka 19
अध्याय २९ — वासुदेव–संजय संवादः
Karma, Varṇa-Dharma, and the Ethics of Governance
यस्य कामो वर्तते नित्यमेव नान्य: शमाद् भारतानामिति सम | स बाह्लिकानामृषभो मनीषी त्वयाभिवाद्य: संजय साधुशील:
yasya kāmo vartate nityam eva nānyaḥ śamād bhāratānām iti sam | sa bāhlikānām ṛṣabho manīṣī tvayābhivādyaḥ sañjaya sādhūśīlaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „O Sañjaya, überbringe meinen ehrerbietigen Gruß dem weisen und edlen Bāhlīka—dem Vornehmsten unter den Bāhlīkas—dessen beständiger und einziger Wunsch dies ist: dass Frieden und Eintracht unter den Bhāratas immerdar herrschen mögen. Für ihn gibt es kein anderes Begehren als die Gemüter zu besänftigen und die Harmonie wiederherzustellen.“
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates śama (peaceful restraint and concord) as the highest and sole worthy desire in a fractured family polity; it frames ethical leadership as prioritizing reconciliation over personal gain.
In the diplomatic exchanges preceding war, Yudhiṣṭhira instructs Sañjaya to offer his respectful greetings to the virtuous elder Bāhlīka, praising him as one whose constant aim is peace among the Bhāratas.