Shloka 41
“यत: कृष्णस्ततो धर्मो” यतो धर्मस्ततो जय: । वासुदेवेन तीर्थेन पुत्र संशाम्य पाण्डवै:
yataḥ kṛṣṇas tato dharmo yato dharmas tato jayaḥ | vāsudevena tīrthena putra saṁśāmya pāṇḍavāḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : « Là où se tient Kṛṣṇa, là se tient le Dharma ; et là où se tient le Dharma, là est la victoire. Aussi, mon fils, prends refuge dans la présence sacrée de Vāsudeva et apaise les Pāṇḍava : que l’hostilité se refroidisse et que la réconciliation soit recherchée selon la droiture. »
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts a moral axiom: alignment with Kṛṣṇa—understood as the embodiment of righteous counsel and divine order—means alignment with Dharma, and Dharma inevitably yields true victory. It frames success not merely as military gain but as the outcome of ethical rightness.
Bhīṣma, instructing after the great war, emphasizes that the Pāṇḍavas’ triumph is grounded in Dharma because Kṛṣṇa stands with them. He urges the listener (“O son”) toward pacification—cooling conflict and acting through the sanctifying refuge of Vāsudeva’s guidance.