Shloka 233
कर्णपरर्वणि त्रयोचत्वारिंशदध्यायः (Karṇa-parva Adhyāya 43) — Kṛṣṇa’s Battlefield Assessment and the Reversal Around Bhīma
येषां षड़भागहर्ता त्वमुभयो: शुभपापयो: । ब्राह्मणने निरर्थक आचार-विचारवाले बाहीकोंको ऐसा ही बताया है, जिनके पुण्य और पाप दोनोंका छठा भाग तुम लिया करते हो
yeṣāṃ ṣaḍbhāgahartā tvam ubhayoḥ śubhapāpayoḥ |
Karna said: “You are the one who takes a sixth share of both their merit and their sin.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the doctrine of shared moral accountability: a ruler (or responsible authority) is not ethically isolated, but partakes in a portion of the merit and sin generated within the community he governs—especially through protection, justice, and the upholding of dharma.
Karna, speaking in the Karna Parva context, makes a pointed ethical remark to his addressee: since the addressee is regarded as one who receives a ‘sixth share’ (ṣaḍbhāga) of people’s outcomes, he must also bear responsibility for both their good and bad—implying accountability tied to authority.