Shloka 21
Aśvatthāmā’s Buddhi-Doctrine and Nocturnal Incursion Resolve (अश्वत्थाम्नः बुद्धिविचारः सौप्तिकसंकल्पश्च)
सो5स्मि जात: कुले श्रेष्ठे ब्राह्मणानां सुपूजिते | मन्दभाग्यतयास्म्येतं क्षत्रधर्ममनुछित:,“मैं ब्राह्मणोंके परम सम्मानित श्रेष्ठ कुलमें उत्पन्न हुआ हूँ, तथापि दुर्भाग्यके कारण इस क्षत्रिय-धर्मका अनुष्ठान करता हूँ
so 'smi jātaḥ kule śreṣṭhe brāhmaṇānāṃ supūjite | mandabhāgyatayāsmye taṃ kṣatradharmam anuṣṭhitaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “I was born in an excellent lineage, highly honored among Brahmins; yet, through ill fortune, I find myself undertaking this kṣatriya-duty.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical strain when one’s inherited social-religious identity (Brahmin lineage) clashes with the violent obligations of wartime kṣatriya-conduct. It frames such role-conflict as a tragic compulsion—attributed to misfortune—inviting reflection on dharma as both contextual and burdensome.
In the Sauptika Parva’s grim aftermath of battle, the speaker voices a self-justifying lament: despite being born in a revered Brahmin line, he is engaged in kṣatriya-type action. The statement functions as a confession of inner dissonance amid the violent events unfolding in this parva.