Shloka 44

Devanagari script

त्यक्त्वा छम्म त्विदं राजन क्षत्रधर्म समाश्रित: । कुरु कार्याणि सर्वाणि धर्मिष्ठोडसि नरर्षभ,“राजन! नरश्रेष्ठ! यदि तुम धर्मनिष्ठ हो तो यह छल-छठ्म छोड़कर क्षत्रियधर्मका आश्रय ले उसीके अनुसार सब कार्य करो

Transliteration

tyaktvā chadma tv idaṃ rājan kṣatradharma-samāśritaḥ | kuru kāryāṇi sarvāṇi dharmiṣṭho 'si nararṣabha ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O King, O best of men—abandon this deceit. Take refuge in the warrior’s code, and then carry out all your actions in accordance with it, for you are one who stands by dharma.”

Word by Word

त्यक्त्वाhaving abandoned

छलम्deceit, trick

तुbut, indeed

इदम्this

राजन्O king

क्षत्रधर्मम्the duty of a kshatriya

समाश्रितःhaving resorted to, having taken refuge in

कुरुdo, perform

कार्याणिduties, tasks, things to be done

सर्वाणिall

धर्मिष्ठःmost righteous, devoted to dharma

असिyou are

नरर्षभO bull among men, O best of men

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

rājan (the king addressed)

naraṛṣabha (best of men, epithet of the addressee)

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?

The verse urges ethical clarity: renounce deceit (chadma) and act according to kṣatriya-dharma—open, honorable, duty-bound conduct—because true righteousness is incompatible with trickery.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya, in the Udyoga Parva’s counsel-and-negotiation context, addresses a king and exhorts him to stop relying on stratagems and instead proceed with decisive actions grounded in the warrior code and dharma.