Shloka 226
Bhīma–Duryodhana Gadāyuddha Saṃkalpa
Resolve for the Mace Duel
एतावदुकक््त्वा वचनं विरराम जनाधिप: । “भरतश्रेष्ठ) आज मैं भाइयोंसहित तुम्हारा वध करके उन यशस्वी क्षत्रियोंक ऋणसे उऋण हो जाऊँगा। बाह्लीक
sañjaya uvāca | etāvad uktvā vacanaṁ virarāma janādhipaḥ | “bharataśreṣṭha, adya ahaṁ bhrātṛbhiḥ saha tvāṁ hatvā teṣu yaśasviṣu kṣatriyeṣu ṛṇād uṛṇo bhaviṣyāmi | bāhlīka-droṇa-bhīṣma-mahāmanā-karṇa-śūravīra-jayadratha-bhagadattta-madrarājaśalya-bhūriśravāḥ-subalakumāra-śakuni-tathā putra-mitra-suhṛd-bandhu-bāndhaveṣu ca ṛṇād api uṛṇo bhaviṣyāmi” iti | rājā duryodhana etāvad uktvā tūṣṇīṁ babhūva |
Sañjaya said: Having spoken these words, the lord of men fell silent. “O best of the Bharatas, today, together with my brothers, I shall slay you and thereby free myself from the debt I owe to those illustrious kṣatriyas. I shall be released from the debt I owe to Bāhlīka, Droṇa, Bhīṣma, the great-souled Karṇa, the heroic Jayadratha, Bhagadatta, Śalya the king of Madra, Bhūriśravā, Śakuni the son of Subala, and also from the debt I owe to my sons, friends, well-wishers, and kinsmen.” Having said this much, King Duryodhana became silent.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames warfare as a network of obligations (ṛṇa): Duryodhana interprets loyalty to elders, allies, and kin as a debt to be repaid through decisive action in battle. Ethically, it highlights how the language of duty and gratitude can be used to justify violence, revealing the tension between personal obligation and broader dharma.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, after declaring his intention to kill his opponent with the help of his brothers, claims he will thereby become ‘free of debt’ to prominent warriors and to his own relations who have supported him. After this declaration of resolve, he falls silent.