Shloka 23
Chapter 15: Counsel on Initiative vs. Renunciation in the Rajasuya Project (सभापर्व, अध्याय १५)
क्षत्रिय: शस्त्रमरणो यदा भवति सत्कृत: । ततः सम मागधं संख्ये प्रतिबाधेम यद् वयम्
kṣatriyaḥ śastramaraṇo yadā bhavati satkṛtaḥ | tataḥ saṃ māgadhaṃ saṅkhye pratibādhema yad vayam ||
Kṛṣṇa said: “For a kṣatriya, to meet death by weapons in battle is itself an honour. Therefore, let us confront the Magadhan king (Jarāsandha) in single combat on the battlefield and bring him down.”
कृष्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Kṛṣṇa frames a warrior’s death by weapons in rightful battle as an honour (satkāra), expressing the Mahābhārata’s kṣatriya-dharma ideal that courage and acceptance of battle-death, when aligned with duty, is not disgrace but esteem.
Kṛṣṇa urges his side to engage the Magadhan ruler Jarāsandha directly in battlefield single combat, arguing that such a confrontation accords with warrior ethics and that defeating him in a duel is the appropriate course.