Shloka 52
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 71 — Kṣatra-dharma Counsel, Public Legitimacy, and Mobilization
जयो नैवोभयोर्दष्टो नोभयोश्व॒ पराजय: । तथैवापचयो दृष्टो व्यपयाने क्षयव्ययौ,न तो कहीं दोनों पक्षोंकी विजय होती देखी गयी है और न दोनोंकी पराजय ही दृष्टिगोचर हुई है। हाँ, दोनोंके धन-वैभवका नाश अवश्य देखा गया है। यदि कोई पक्ष पीठ दिखाकर भाग जाय, तो उसे भी धन और जन दोनोंकी हानि उठानी पड़ती है
jayo naivobhayor dṛṣṭo nobhayoś ca parājayaḥ | tathaivāpacayo dṛṣṭo vyapayāne kṣaya-vyayau ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “In such conflicts, one does not truly see victory for both sides, nor does one see defeat for both together. What is certainly seen is decline—when the armies withdraw and disperse, there is loss and wasting away. Even if a side turns its back and flees, it still suffers the ruin of wealth and people.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
War does not yield a clean, shared good: even when neither side can claim an unambiguous outcome, what is reliably produced is depletion—loss of people, wealth, and stability. Hence a dharmic ruler should weigh the inevitable human and material cost before choosing conflict.
In Udyoga Parva, as negotiations and preparations for the Kurukṣetra war intensify, Yudhiṣṭhira reflects on the real results of armed confrontation. He argues that whether one advances or retreats, the visible outcome is mutual diminishment—underscoring his preference for settlement over war.