Shloka 26
सत्यं ते प्रतिजानामि सर्वशस्त्रभूतां वर । इष्टापूर्तेन च शपे वीर्येण च सुतैरपि,समस्त शस्त्रधारियोंमें श्रेष्ठ गुरुदेव! आज मैं अपने यज्ञ-यागादि तथा कुँआ, बावली बनवाने आदि शुभ कर्मोंकी, पराक्रमकी तथा पुत्रोंकी शपथ खाकर आपके सामने सच्ची प्रतिज्ञा करता हूँ कि अब मैं पाण्डवोंके सहित समस्त पांचालोंको युद्धमें मारकर ही शान्ति पाऊँगा अथवा मेरे वे सुहृद् युद्धमें मरकर जिन लोकोंमें गये हैं, उसीमें मैं भी चला जाऊँगा
satyaṃ te pratijānāmi sarvaśastrabhūtāṃ vara | iṣṭāpūrtena ca śape vīryeṇa ca sutair api ||
Duryodhana said: “I make you a true vow, O best among those who are the very embodiment of all weapons. I swear it by my sacrificial merits and acts of public beneficence, and also by my valor and by my sons: I shall find peace only after slaying the Pāṇḍavas together with all the Pāñcālas in battle; otherwise, I shall go to the same worlds where my dear allies, fallen in war, have gone.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how vows and sacred oaths can be invoked to justify extreme resolve in war. Ethically, it highlights the tension between ritual/charitable merit (iṣṭa–pūrta) and the destructive intent of vengeance—showing that religious language can be used to intensify, rather than restrain, violence.
Duryodhana addresses Droṇa as the supreme master of weapons and makes a solemn pledge, swearing by his religious merits, valor, and sons. He declares he will accept peace only after killing the Pāṇḍavas and the Pāñcālas in battle, or else he will follow his fallen comrades into the next world.