Shloka 15
भीष्मद्रोणयोर्दुर्योधनं प्रति शमोपदेशः | Bhīṣma and Droṇa’s Counsel of Conciliation to Duryodhana
विक्रमाधिगता हार्था: क्षत्रधर्मेण जीवत: । मनो मनुष्यस्य सदा प्रीणन्ति पुरुषोत्तम
vikramādhigatā hārthāḥ kṣatradharmeṇa jīvataḥ | mano manuṣyasya sadā prīṇanti puruṣottama puruṣottama | tad-anantaraṃ kṣatriya-dharme tatpara-raṇe vā ubhau mādrī-kumārau prati mama eṣa saṃdeśaḥ—"vīrāḥ! yuyam api prāṇānām api bājīṃ kṛtvā sva-vikrameṇa prāptān bhogān eva bhuṅkṣvadhvam | kṣatra-dharmeṇa nirvāhaṃ kurvataḥ manuṣyasya manaḥ vikramārjitāḥ padārthāḥ eva sadā santoṣayanti"
“O best of men, it is the gains won by one’s own valor—while living by the Kshatriya code—that continually gladden a man’s heart. Therefore, convey this message next to the two sons of Madri, ever intent on the warrior’s duty: ‘Heroes! Even staking your very lives, enjoy only those pleasures you have obtained through your own prowess. For a man who sustains himself by the Kshatriya way, the mind is truly satisfied only by possessions earned through valor.’”
पुत्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
A Kshatriya should value and enjoy only what is earned through personal valor and righteous warrior-duty; such self-won gains alone bring lasting inner satisfaction and honor.
A speaker (identified as ‘the son’) instructs that a message be delivered to the two sons of Madri (Nakula and Sahadeva), urging them to remain steadfast in Kshatriya-dharma and to partake only of enjoyments obtained by their own heroic effort, even at the risk of life.