Shloka 29
Sātyaki’s Assurance and the Protection of Dharmarāja (सात्यकिवचनम्—धर्मराजरक्षणविचारः)
यथा परमकं कृत्यं सैन्धवस्थ वधो मम । तथैव सुमहत् कृत्यं धर्मराजस्य रक्षणम्,“मेरे लिये सिंधुराज जयद्रथका वध जैसे अत्यन्त महान् कार्य है, उसी प्रकार धर्मराजकी रक्षा भी परम महत्त्वपूर्ण कर्तव्य है
yathā paramakaṃ kṛtyaṃ saindhavastha vadho mama | tathaiva sumahat kṛtyaṃ dharmarājasya rakṣaṇam ||
Sañjaya said: “Just as the slaying of the Sindhu prince (Jayadratha) is, for me, a supremely great duty, so too is the protection of Dharmarāja an equally weighty obligation.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames ethical action in terms of kṛtya (binding duty): even amid war, one must prioritize obligations—here, avenging/neutralizing a grave threat (Jayadratha) and safeguarding the righteous king (Dharmarāja) are presented as equally paramount responsibilities.
Sañjaya reports a warrior’s resolve: the killing of Jayadratha—whose role in earlier events made him a critical target—is treated as a major mission, and alongside it stands the urgent necessity of protecting Yudhiṣṭhira, the moral center of the Pāṇḍava side.