Shloka 8
Śikhaṇḍī-janma-nigūḍha-vṛtta (The concealed birth-account of Śikhaṇḍī) | शिखण्डी-जन्म-निगूढ-वृत्त
बद्ध्वा पज्चालराजानमानयिष्यामहे गृहम् । अन्यं राजानमाधाय पज्चालेषु नरेश्वरम्,वहाँ महामना मित्र राजाओंका यह निश्चय घोषित हुआ कि राजन! यदि यह सत्य सिद्ध हुआ कि शिखण्डी वास्तवमें पुत्र नहीं कन्या है, तब हमलोग पांचालराजको कैद करके अपने घरको ले आयेंगे और पांचालदेशके राज्यपर दूसरे किसी राजाको बिठाकर शिखण्डीसहित द्रुपदको मरवा डालेंगे
baddhvā pāñcālarājānam ānayiṣyāmahe gṛham | anyaṃ rājānam ādhāya pāñcāleṣu nareśvaram ||
Dijo Bhīṣma: «Aprehenderemos al rey de los Pāñcālas y lo traeremos cautivo a nuestra casa. Luego, oh señor de los hombres, instalando a otro rey sobre los Pāñcālas, eliminaremos a Drupada junto con Śikhaṇḍī.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how political expediency and vengeance can drive plans that violate ethical restraint: capturing a king, replacing him, and seeking the death of perceived offenders. It invites reflection on rājadharma—whether power can be pursued without injustice, and how suspicion and retaliation escalate toward war.
Bhīṣma reports a hardline resolve: to capture the Pāñcāla king (Drupada), bring him as a prisoner, install a different ruler in Pāñcāla, and eliminate Drupada together with Śikhaṇḍī. In the surrounding context (as reflected in the Gītā Press Hindi), this is tied to the claim that Śikhaṇḍī is not truly male, used as a pretext for punitive action.