Shloka 21
एताश्षान्याश्न॒ परुषा वाच: स समुदीरयन् । श्लाघते ज्ञातिमध्ये सम त्वयि प्रव्रजिते वनम्,जब आप वनकी ओर जाने लगे, उस समय भी वह बन्धु-बान्धवोंके बीचमें ऊपर कही हुई तथा और भी बहुत-सी कठोर बातें कहकर अपनी प्रशंसा करता रहा
etāś cānyāś ca paruṣā vācaḥ sa samudīrayan | ślāghate jñātimadhye sam tvayi pravrajite vanam ||
Uttering these—and many other—harsh words, he kept proclaiming his own greatness in the midst of the kinsmen, even at the time when you had departed for the forest as an exile. The remark underscores the ethical ugliness of pride and cruelty displayed publicly against one who is already suffering, and it frames Yudhiṣṭhira’s grievance in terms of violated kinship-dharma and basic decency.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Cruel speech and self-glorification, especially before one’s own relatives and against an already afflicted person, are adharma. The verse highlights how pride expressed through harsh public speech violates kinship-duty and erodes the moral fabric that should restrain conflict.
Yudhiṣṭhira recalls how the opponent continued to utter harsh remarks and boast among the family assembly even when the Pāṇḍavas were being sent away to the forest. It is part of the moral indictment that the Kaurava side acted with humiliation and arrogance, not merely political rivalry.