Shloka 54
अध्याय ३: कृपस्य दुर्योधनं प्रति नीत्युपदेशः
Kṛpa’s Counsel to Duryodhana
अनुसृत्य हनिष्यन्ति श्रेयो न: समरे वध: । “यदि तुमलोग पृथक्-पृथक् होकर भागोगे तो पाण्डव तुम सभी अपराधियोंका पीछा करके तुम्हें मार डालेंगे, अतः युद्धमें ही मारा जाना हमारे लिये श्रेयस्कर होगा ।। ५३ ई ।। सुख: सांग्रामिको मृत्यु: क्षत्रधर्मेण युध्यताम्
anusṛtya haniṣyanti śreyo naḥ samare vadhaḥ | sukhaḥ sāṅgrāmiko mṛtyuḥ kṣatradharmeṇa yudhyatām ||
Sañjaya said: “If we flee in scattered groups, the Pāṇḍavas will pursue us and kill us as offenders. Therefore, it is better for us to meet death on the battlefield. For those who fight in accordance with the kṣatriya’s duty, a warrior’s death in battle is a good and fitting end.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse upholds kṣatriya-dharma: for a warrior, facing death while fighting is preferable to dishonorable flight that leads to being hunted down as a wrongdoer. It frames battlefield death as ethically superior when one fights according to duty.
Sañjaya reports counsel given amid the crisis of war: if the fighters break ranks and flee separately, the Pāṇḍavas will chase and kill them. Hence they are urged to stand together and accept the risk of death in open combat.