Shloka 23
“वत्स! यज्ञकर्ता, दानी, जितेन्द्रिय, ब्रह्मवेत्ता ब्राह्मण, ब्रह्मचारी, पुण्यतीर्थोमें नहानेवाले, कृतज्ञ, उदार, गुरुसेवा-परायण और सहस्रोंकी संख्यामें दक्षिणा देनेवाले धर्मात्मा पुरुषोंको जो गति प्राप्त होती है, वही तुम्हें भी मिले ।। या गतिर्युध्यमानानां शूराणामनिवर्तिनाम् | हत्वारीन् निहतानां च संग्रामे तां गतिं ब्रज,'संग्राममें युद्धतत्पर हो कभी पीछे पैर न हटानेवाले और शत्रुओंको मारकर मरनेवाले शूरवीरोंको जो गति प्राप्त होती है, वही तुम्हें भी मिले
sañjaya uvāca | vatsa! yajñakartā dānī jitendriyo brahmavettā brāhmaṇo brahmacārī puṇyatīrtheṣu snānavān kṛtajña udāro guruśuśrūṣā-parāyaṇaś ca sahasraśo dakṣiṇā-dātā dharmātmā puruṣo yāṃ gatiṃ prāpnoti sā tvām api prāpnuyāt || yā gatir yudhyamānānāṃ śūrāṇām anivartinām | hatvārīn nihatānāṃ ca saṅgrāme tāṃ gatiṃ vraja ||
Sañjaya said: “My child! May you attain the very same blessed destiny that is won by righteous men—those who perform sacrifices, give generously, master their senses, know Brahman, live in brahmacarya, bathe at holy fords, remain grateful, are open-handed, devoted to serving their teachers, and bestow gifts in the thousands. And may you also reach that destiny which belongs to heroes who, intent on battle, never turn back—who, having slain their foes, themselves fall in the clash of arms.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse equates two paths of merit: the spiritual-ritual virtues of righteous householders/ascetics (sacrifice, generosity, self-control, gratitude, guru-service) and the steadfast fulfillment of a warrior’s duty in battle without retreat. It frames both as dharmic routes to an exalted posthumous destiny when performed with integrity.
Sanjaya, narrating the Kurukṣetra events to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, voices a blessing addressed to a ‘child’ (vatsa), praising the highest attainments of virtuous religious life and then extending the same promised ‘gati’ to a hero who fights unwaveringly and falls after slaying enemies in the battlefield.