Shloka 57
गदायुद्धप्रतिज्ञा — The Vow and Terms of the Mace Duel
सुयोधन! यदि तुम इसे देनेमें समर्थ होते तो भी मैं तुम्हारी दी हुई इस पृथ्वीपर शासन करनेकी इच्छा नहीं रखता ।। अधर्मेण न गृलह्नीयां त्वया दत्तां महीमिमाम् | न हि धर्म: स्मृतो राजन क्षत्रियस्य प्रतिग्रह:,राजन! तुम्हारी दी हुई इस भूमिको मैं अधर्मपूर्वक नहीं ले सकता; क्षत्रियके लिये दान लेना धर्म नहीं बताया गया है
Adharmeṇa na gṛhṇīyāṁ tvayā dattāṁ mahīm imām | na hi dharmaḥ smṛto rājan kṣatriyasya pratigrahaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «Oh Suyodhana, aun si fueras capaz de concederla, no tengo deseo de gobernar esta tierra como un don tuyo. No puedo aceptar de ti esta tierra por medios injustos; pues para un kṣatriya, oh rey, no se recuerda como dharma el aceptar una dádiva.»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Yudhiṣṭhira asserts that political authority must be obtained through righteous means consistent with kṣatriya-dharma; accepting a kingdom as a ‘gift’ from an adversary—especially under adharma—undermines legitimacy and honor, and ‘pratigraha’ (receiving gifts/alms) is not upheld as the proper dharma for a kṣatriya.
In the Shalya Parva war setting, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Suyodhana (Duryodhana), rejecting the idea of ruling the earth on Duryodhana’s grant. He insists he will not accept the land as a donation and frames this refusal as grounded in traditional dharma for the warrior-ruler class.