Shloka 32
अध्याय ५६ — च्यवन–कुशिकसंवादः
Cyavana–Kuśika Dialogue on Lineage, Conflict, and Transmission
ततः स तं तथेत्युक्त्वा कल्पयित्वा महारथम् | भार्या वामे धुरि तदा चात्मानं दक्षिणे तथा
tataḥ sa taṃ tathety uktvā kalpayitvā mahāratham | bhāryāṃ vāme dhuri tadā cātmānaṃ dakṣiṇe tathā ||
Bhīṣma said: “Then he replied, ‘So be it,’ and had a great chariot made ready. At that time he placed his wife on the left side of the yoke to bear the load, while he himself took up the right side likewise.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores ethical accountability in action: assent and execution are not morally neutral when they impose hardship on others—especially one’s spouse. It invites reflection on dharma in household and royal life: duty should not become an excuse to transfer or multiply suffering.
A king agrees to a request (“so be it”), prepares a large chariot, and sets it up so that his wife is placed on the left side of the yoke to bear the load while he takes the right side himself—depicting a literal sharing (and assigning) of burden as the story proceeds.