Shloka 13

Devanagari script

अकार्य परमं कृत्वा मिथ्यावादी च पाण्डव: । यो हासौ छटद्मना5<चार्य शस्त्र संन्यासयत्‌ तदा

Transliteration

akāryaṃ paramaṃ kṛtvā mithyāvādī ca pāṇḍavaḥ | yo hāsau chadmanā ācāryaṃ śastra-saṃnyāsayat tadā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Having committed a most grievous wrong and spoken a falsehood, that Pāṇḍava—who by deceit caused the Teacher (Droṇa) at that time to lay down his weapons—is the one being referred to.

Word by Word

अकार्यa wrongful act / improper deed

परमम्supreme, extreme

कृत्वाhaving done

मिथ्यावादीa liar / one who speaks falsely

चand

पाण्डवःthe Pandava (Yudhiṣṭhira)

यःwho

हindeed (emphatic particle)

असौthat (person), he

छद्मनाby deceit / by a ruse

आचार्यO teacher (Droṇa)

शस्त्रweapons

संन्यासयत्caused (him) to lay down / made (him) renounce

तदाthen, at that time

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Pāṇḍava (implied: Yudhiṣṭhira)

Ācārya (Droṇa)

śastra (weapons)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical cost of victory gained through adharma: even a generally righteous person can be stained by a single grave wrong—especially falsehood and deceit used to break an opponent’s will. It frames the act as ‘paramam akāryam’ (an utmost impropriety), underscoring that ends do not automatically justify means in dharma discourse.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya refers to the moment when the Pāṇḍavas, through a deceptive stratagem involving a false report, led Droṇa (the Ācārya) to abandon fighting and lay down his weapons. The line points to the Pāṇḍava who uttered the falsehood and to the deceit that induced Droṇa’s śastra-saṃnyāsa (putting down of arms).