Shloka 8
Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 92: Kṛṣṇasya sabhāpraveśaḥ
Krishna’s Entry into the Royal Assembly
सोऊहं यतिष्ये प्रशमं क्षत्त: कर्तुममायया । कुरूणां सृञ्जयानां च संग्रामे विनशिष्यताम्,अतः विदुरजी! मैं युद्धमें मर मिटनेको उद्यत हुए कौरवों तथा सूंजयोंमें संधि करानेका निश्छलभावसे प्रयत्न करूँगा
so ’haṁ yatiṣye praśamaṁ kṣattaḥ kartum amāyayā | kurūṇāṁ sṛñjayānāṁ ca saṅgrāme vinaśiṣyatām ||
Darum werde ich, o Kṣattṛ (Vidura), mich mit lauterer, unverschlagener Absicht bemühen, Beruhigung und Versöhnung zwischen den Kurus und den Sṛñjayas herbeizuführen, die in der kommenden Schlacht dem Untergang entgegengehen. Redlich will ich versuchen, Frieden zu stiften unter denen, die zur gegenseitigen Vernichtung eilen.
(वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when war seems inevitable, dharma demands a sincere, non-deceptive attempt at pacification (praśama). Ethical statecraft prioritizes preventing needless destruction through honest reconciliation efforts.
The speaker (Vaiśaṃpāyana, narrating) conveys an intention addressed to Vidura (Kṣattṛ): to try earnestly and without guile to broker peace between the Kurus and the Sṛñjayas, who are otherwise headed toward annihilation in battle.