Shloka 34
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 28: Dharmādharmalakṣaṇa in Āpad
Crisis-Discernment of Right and Wrong
सो<यं लोभान्मन्यते धर्ममेतं यमिच्छति क्रोधवशानुगामी । भाग: पुनः पाण्डवानां निविष्ट- स्तं न: कस्मादाददीरन् परे वै,दुर्योधन क्रोधके वशीभूत हो उसके अनुसार चलनेवाला है और वह लोभसे राज्यको ले लेना चाहता है। इसे वह धर्म मान रहा है; परंतु वह तो पाण्डवोंका भाग है, जो कौरवोंके यहाँ धरोहरके रूपमें रखा गया है। संजय! हमारे उस भागको हमसे शत्रुता रखनेवाले कौरव कैसे ले सकते हैं?
so 'yaṁ lobhān manyate dharmam etaṁ yam icchati krodhavaśānugāmī | bhāgaḥ punaḥ pāṇḍavānāṁ niviṣṭas taṁ naḥ kasmād ādadīran pare vai ||
Driven by greed, he imagines this to be ‘dharma’—the very course he desires—while in truth he is led along by the power of anger. But that share belongs to the Pāṇḍavas; it has merely been lodged among the Kauravas as a deposit. How, then, could our hostile opponents possibly seize that portion from us?
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse exposes moral self-deception: greed and anger can masquerade as ‘dharma’ in one’s own mind. True dharma here is tied to rightful ownership and justice—what belongs to the Pāṇḍavas cannot be ethically rebranded as a legitimate seizure by hostile rivals.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war negotiations and arguments, Vāyu condemns the opposing side’s claim to the Pāṇḍavas’ share of the kingdom. He asserts that the Pāṇḍavas’ portion is merely held among the Kauravas like a deposit, and challenges how enemies could rightfully take it away.