Shloka 376
शल्यपर्व — चतुर्विंशोऽध्यायः | Śalya Parva, Chapter 24: Disruption of Kaurava Formations and the Elephant Encirclement
तथास्य दृश्यते चेष्टा नीतिश्वैव विशाम्पते । 'जनार्दन! निश्चय ही यह अपने कुलका विनाश करनेवाला पैदा हुआ है। प्रजानाथ! इसकी नीति और चेष्टा ऐसी ही दिखायी देती है
tathāsya dṛśyate ceṣṭā nītiś caiva viśāmpate | janārdana niścayaṃ hi eṣa svakulavināśakaraḥ prajā-nātha | asya nītir ceṣṭā ca tathāiva dṛśyate |
Sañjaya said: “So too, O lord of the people, his conduct and his policy are seen to be of that very kind. ‘Janārdana, it is certain—this one has been born as a destroyer of his own lineage. O protector of subjects, his strategy and his actions appear exactly so.’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical scrutiny of a leader’s visible conduct (ceṣṭā) and guiding policy (nīti): when these consistently point toward harm—especially the ruin of one’s own lineage and social order—such a trajectory is judged as morally and politically destructive.
Sañjaya reports an assessment made in the war context: someone’s behavior and strategy are being observed and interpreted as clear signs that he will bring about the destruction of his own clan; the remark is addressed to Janārdana (Kṛṣṇa) using honorific epithets.