Shloka 10

Śaṅkha–Likhita Upākhyāna: Daṇḍa, Confession, and the Purification of Kingship (शङ्ख-लिखितोपाख्यानम्)

Devanagari script

आददानस्य विजयं विग्रहं च युधिष्ठिर । समानधर्मकुशला: स्थापयन्ति नरेश्वर,“राजा युधिष्ठिर! विषम भावसे रहित धर्ममें कुशल पुरुष विजय पानेकी इच्छावाले राजाके लिये संग्रामकी ही स्थापना करते हैं

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca |

ādādānasya vijayaṁ vigrahaṁ ca yudhiṣṭhira |

samānadharmakuśalāḥ sthāpayanti nareśvara ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “O Yudhiṣṭhira, O lord of men: for a king who seeks to secure victory and is prepared to take up conflict, those who are skilled in dharma and free from partiality establish the course of war itself—treating it as a regulated means toward rightful success rather than as mere passion or cruelty.”

Word by Word

आददानस्यof (the king) desiring to take/obtain

विजयम्victory

विग्रहम्conflict/war

चand

युधिष्ठिरO Yudhiṣṭhira

समानधर्मकुशलाःthose skilled in equitable/consistent dharma

स्थापयन्तिestablish/ordain

नरेश्वरO lord of men (king)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Yudhiṣṭhira

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

War, when undertaken by a king for victory, should be instituted and regulated by impartial experts in dharma—so that conflict serves a principled purpose and remains bounded by righteous norms rather than personal bias or rage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana addresses Yudhiṣṭhira within the Śānti Parva’s instruction on kingship, explaining how dharma-versed counselors frame and authorize warfare for a ruler seeking victory, emphasizing impartiality and rule-governed conduct.