Shloka 15
Rāmopākhyāna—Rāma–Sītā Origins and the Opening of Rāvaṇa’s Genealogy
कदा तु त॑ क्रतुवरं राजसूयं महाधनम् | निहत्य पाण्डवान् सर्वानाहरिष्यामि कौरवा:,नृपश्रेष्ठ दुर्योधनने अपने पास खड़े हुए कौरवोंको सम्बोधित करके कहा--“कुरुकुलके राजकुमारो! कब ऐसा समय आयगा जब मैं समस्त पाण्डवोंको मारकर प्रचुर धनसे सम्पन्न होनेवाले उस क्रतुश्रेष्ठ राजसूयका अनुष्ठान करूँगा”
kadā tu taṁ kratuvaraṁ rājasūyaṁ mahādhanam | nihatya pāṇḍavān sarvān āhariṣyāmi kauravāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: „Ihr Kaurava-Prinzen! Wann wird jene Zeit kommen, da ich, nachdem ich alle Pāṇḍavas erschlagen habe, das vornehmste Opfer—das Rājasūya—reich an Schätzen erlangen und vollziehen werde?“
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the pursuit of status and ritual glory becomes ethically hollow when grounded in envy and violence. Royal rites like the Rājasūya are meant to crown legitimate sovereignty, but here the desire to perform it is tied to killing kin, illustrating the Mahābhārata’s warning that power sought through adharma corrodes both ruler and realm.
In Vaiśampāyana’s narration, Duryodhana addresses the Kaurava princes, voicing his longing for the moment when he can eliminate the Pāṇḍavas and then secure the wealth and supremacy associated with the Rājasūya sacrifice. It reflects his escalating hostility and fixation on surpassing his rivals through force.