Shloka 23
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 72 — Bhīmasena’s counsel on conciliation and Duryodhana’s disposition
जो लोग वहाँ बुलाये गये थे, वे सभी नरेश आपको निरपराध देखकर रोते और आँसू बहाते हुए रुँँधे हुए कण्ठसे उस समय चुपचाप सभामें बैठे रहे ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | ye lokāḥ tatra bulāyitāḥ te sarve nareśāḥ tvāṃ niraparādhaṃ dṛṣṭvā rudantaḥ aśrūṇi muñcantaḥ ruddha-kaṇṭhāḥ tadā tūṣṇīṃ sabhāyāṃ niṣaṇṇā babhūvuḥ || na cainam abhyānandan te rājāno brāhmaṇaiḥ saha | sarve duryodhana tatra nindanti sma sabhāsadaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Alle Könige, die man dorthin berufen hatte, saßen, als sie dich ohne Schuld sahen, schweigend in der Versammlung—weinend, Tränen vergießend, mit vom Kummer zugeschnürter Kehle. Und jene Könige, zusammen mit den Brāhmaṇas, spendeten ihm keinerlei Zustimmung. In jener Halle, o Duryodhana, tadelten ihn alle Anwesenden in Wahrheit.“
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral legitimacy is not secured by power or procedure: when a person is seen as blameless, the righteous—kings and brāhmaṇas alike—respond with compassion and refuse to endorse wrongdoing. Public silence and tears can signify ethical protest, while open censure marks adharma.
Yudhiṣṭhira recalls a court/assembly scene: the summoned rulers, recognizing the innocence of the wronged party, sit in grief-stricken silence. They do not praise or approve Duryodhana; instead, the assembly members criticize him for his conduct.