Shloka 156
Drupada’s Instruction to the Purohita for the Kaurava Embassy (द्रुपदोपदेशः दूतप्रेषणम्)
विभेत्स्यति मनांस्येषामिति मे नात्र संशय: । आप धर्मपरायण तो हैं ही, वहाँ धर्मानुकूल बर्ताव करते हुए कौरवकुलमें जो कृपालु वृद्ध पुरुष हैं, उनके समक्ष पूर्वपुरुषोंद्वारा आचरित कुलधर्मका प्रतिपादन एवं पाण्डवोंके क्लेशोंका वर्णन कीजियेगा। इस प्रकार आप उनका मन दुर्योधनकी ओरसे फोड़ लेंगे, इसमें मुझे कोई संशय नहीं है
vibhetsyati manāṁsy eṣām iti me nātra saṁśayaḥ | āpa dharmaparāyaṇa to haiṁ hī, vahāṁ dharmānukūla bartāv karate hue kauravakule meṁ jo kṛpālu vṛddha puruṣa haiṁ, unake samakṣa pūrvapuruṣoṁdvārā ācarita kuladharmakā pratipādana evaṁ pāṇḍavoṁ ke kleśoṁ kā varṇana kījiye gā | isa prakāra āpa unakā mana duryodhanakī orase phoṛ leṁge, isameṁ mujhe koī saṁśaya nahīṁ hai
Drupada said: “There is no doubt in my mind that their hearts will be shaken. You are devoted to dharma; therefore, when you go there, conduct yourself in a manner befitting dharma. In the presence of the compassionate elders of the Kuru line, set forth the ancestral code of the family as practiced by forefathers, and describe the hardships the Pāṇḍavas have endured. By doing so, you will turn their minds away from Duryodhana—of this I have no doubt.”
दुपद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is advanced not only by force but by principled speech: appeal to ancestral norms (kuladharma), compassion, and the moral authority of elders to restrain wrongdoing and redirect a community away from an unjust leader.
Drupada advises a dharma-minded messenger/agent to approach the compassionate elders of the Kuru line, remind them of their ancestral duties, and recount the Pāṇḍavas’ sufferings so that the elders’ support shifts away from Duryodhana.