Shloka 58
युधिष्ठिरस्य धनंजय-प्रति गर्हा
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Reproach to Dhanaṃjaya
“माननीय नरेश! न इन वीरोंसे कभी अप्रिय वचन बोलो और न महान् युद्धमें पैर ही रखो। यदि अप्रिय वचन बोलना ही हो तो दूसरोंसे बोलना; मेरे-जैसे वीरोंसे नहीं ।।
mānanīya nareśa! na in vīroṃ se kadāpi apriya vacana bolo, na ca mahān yuddha meṃ pāda hī rakho. yadi apriya vacana bolanā hī ho to anyoṃ se bolo; madṛśa vīroṃ se nahiṃ. mādṛśān vinluvan yuddhe etad anyac ca lapsyase. svagṛhaṃ gaccha kaunteya yatra tau keśavārjunau.
Sanjaya said: “O venerable king, never speak harsh words to these warriors, and do not even set foot in this great war. If you must speak unpleasantly, speak so to others—not to heroes like me. By provoking men of my kind in battle, you will gain this and more besides (i.e., ruin and retaliation). Go back to your own home, O son of Kunti—there stand Keshava and Arjuna.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that reckless, insulting speech toward capable warriors is ethically and strategically disastrous. In a dharmic frame, words are actions: provoking the powerful invites predictable consequences, especially amid war where honor and retaliation govern conduct.
Sanjaya reports a sharp admonition: the addressee is told not to enter the great battle and not to speak offensively to valiant fighters. The warning culminates by pointing to the decisive presence of Krishna (Keshava) and Arjuna—implying that confronting them, or antagonizing their side, will end in defeat.