Shloka 14
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Grief, Kṛṣṇa’s Consolation, and Vyāsa’s Admonition (युधिष्ठिरशोक-निवारणोपदेशः)
कर्मणा तद् विधत्स्वेह येन शुध्यति मे मन: । शत्रुदमन श्रीकृष्ण! अब जिस कर्मके द्वारा मुझे अपने इस क्रूरतापूर्ण पापसे छुटकारा मिले तथा जिससे मेरा चित्त शुद्ध हो, वही कीजिये || १३ $ ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
karmaṇā tad vidhatsveha yena śudhyati me manaḥ |
śatrudamana śrīkṛṣṇa! adya yasmin karmaṇā mama asmin krūratāpūrṇāt pāpāt mucyeya, yena ca me cittaṃ śudhyet, tad eva kuru ||
(tam evaṃ vādinaṃ pārthaṃ vyāsaḥ provāca dharmavit |
kuntīnandana yudhiṣṭhiraṃ tathā vadantaṃ dṛṣṭvā dharmatattvavid mahātejā vyāsaḥ sāntvayitvā idaṃ śubhaṃ sārthakaṃ vacanam uvāca— “tāta! tava buddhiḥ adhunāpi na śuddhā; punar bālako citāvivekāt mohena paryavasitaḥ …”)
Yudhiṣṭhira dit : «Ici et maintenant, prescris-moi l’acte par lequel mon esprit pourra être purifié. Ô Śrī Kṛṣṇa, dompteur d’ennemis—accomplis précisément l’œuvre par laquelle je serai délivré de ce péché cruel et par laquelle mon cœur deviendra net.» Comme il parlait ainsi, Vyāsa—connaisseur du dharma—s’adressa au fils de Pṛthā. Voyant Yudhiṣṭhira, fils de Kuntī, parler de la sorte, le rayonnant Vyāsa, le consolant, prononça ces paroles de bon augure et pleines de sens : «Mon enfant, ton entendement n’est pas encore purifié ; une fois encore, par un manque de discernement enfantin, tu es tombé dans l’illusion…»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral purification is not achieved merely by outward acts; it requires right discernment (viveka) and a mind freed from delusion (moha). Vyāsa’s intervention frames Yudhiṣṭhira’s guilt as a spiritual-ethical problem needing wise counsel, not only ritual or action.
Yudhiṣṭhira, burdened by the cruelty and sin he associates with the war’s outcome, implores Kṛṣṇa to prescribe an act that will cleanse his mind. Immediately, Vyāsa appears as a dharma-authority and begins to console and correct Yudhiṣṭhira, indicating that his understanding is still clouded by delusion.