Shloka 27
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 21 — Kīcaka’s clandestine approach and Bhīma’s covert intervention (नर्तनागारे कीचकवध-प्रसङ्गः)
धर्मे स्थितास्मि सततं कुलशीलसमन्विता । नेच्छामि कंचिद् वध्यन्तं तेन जीवसि कीचक,“मैं सदा पातिव्रत्य-धर्ममें स्थित रहती हूँ एवं अपने उत्तम कुलकी मर्यादा और सदाचारसे सम्पन्न हूँ। मैं नहीं चाहती कि मेरे कारण किसीका वध हो, इसीलिये तू अबतक जीवित है”
dharme sthitāsmi satataṁ kulaśīlasamanvitā | necchāmi kañcid vadhyantaṁ tena jīvasi kīcaka ||
I remain ever established in dharma, endowed with the noble standards and good conduct of my lineage. I do not wish that anyone should be slain because of me; therefore, O Kīcaka, you have lived until now.
भीमसेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds steadfastness in dharma and personal integrity: one should uphold virtue and the honor of one’s conduct, and avoid becoming the cause of another’s destruction—yet it also functions as a moral warning that wrongdoing invites consequences.
In the Kīcaka episode of the Virāṭa court, the speaker rebukes Kīcaka by asserting unwavering commitment to dharma and noble conduct, and explains that Kīcaka has survived so far only because she does not wish anyone to be killed on her account—implying that his continued harassment risks a fatal outcome.