Shloka 33
Draupadī’s Exhortation on Rājadharma and Daṇḍa (द्रौपद्याः राजधर्मोपदेशः)
यदि हि स्युरनुन्मत्ता भ्रातरस्ते नराधिप । बद्ध्वा त्वां नास्तिकै: सार्ध प्रशासेयुर्वसुन्धराम्
yadi hi syur anunmattā bhrātaras te narādhipa | baddhvā tvāṁ nāstikaiḥ sārdhaṁ praśāseyuḥ vasundharām, nareśvara ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Ô roi, si tes frères n’avaient pas perdu la raison, ils t’auraient lié toi aussi — avec les impies — puis auraient régné eux-mêmes sur cette terre. Ô seigneur des hommes, tel eût été le cours de leur égarement.»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that when close kin are overtaken by delusion and align with irreligious or anti-dharmic influences, they may justify coercion and usurpation even against their own family. It underscores that legitimate rule must rest on dharma and sound judgment, not on madness, factionalism, or alliance with nāstika tendencies.
Vaiśampāyana addresses a king and comments on the conduct of the king’s brothers: had they not become mentally unbalanced, they would have tied up the king along with the nāstikas and seized control of the earth themselves. The statement functions as a sharp characterization of their moral and political deviation.