Shloka 8
आचार्यो वा महाभाग भारद्वाज: किमब्रवीत् । पिता वा धृतराष्ट्रस्तं गान्धारी वा किमब्रवीत्,महाभाग! भरद्वाजनन्दन आचार्य द्रोणने उस समय क्या कहा? पिता धृतराष्ट्र और माता गान्धारीने भी दुर्योधनसे उस समय क्या बात कही?
ācāryo vā mahābhāga bhāradvājaḥ kim abravīt | pitā vā dhṛtarāṣṭras taṃ gāndhārī vā kim abravīt, mahābhāga |
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O noble one, what did the revered teacher—Bhāradvāja’s son (Droṇa)—say then? And what did his father Dhṛtarāṣṭra say to him, or his mother Gāndhārī? Tell me, O great-souled one.”
युधिष्टिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds ethical accountability before war: Yudhiṣṭhira seeks to know what counsel was offered by elders and authorities (teacher, father, mother). It implies that decisions leading to conflict should be weighed against wise guidance and familial-dharmic responsibility.
In the Udyoga Parva’s lead-up to the Kurukṣetra war, Yudhiṣṭhira asks what Droṇa, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and Gāndhārī said to the concerned party (contextually, Duryodhana), requesting a report of their words and advice at that critical moment.