Shloka 233
Prajñā as Pratiṣṭhā — Indra–Kāśyapa Saṃvāda (Śānti-parva 12.173)
कृत्वा तं खण्डश: पापं दस्युभ्य: प्रददुस्तदा । राजाकी ऐसी आज्ञा पाकर हाथमें शूल और पट्टिश धारण किये राक्षसोंने पापी गौतमके टुकड़े-टुकड़े करके उसे दस्युओंको सौंप दिया
kṛtvā taṃ khaṇḍaśaḥ pāpaṃ dasyubhyaḥ pradaduḥ tadā | rājñā kṛtām ājñāṃ prāpya hastayoḥ śūlaṃ ca paṭṭiśaṃ ca dhārayitvā rākṣasāḥ pāpiṇaṃ gautamaṃ khaṇḍaśaḥ kṛtvā taṃ dasyubhyaḥ samarpayām āsuḥ |
Bhīṣma dit : Après avoir mis en pièces ce pécheur, ils le remirent aux bandits. Ayant reçu l’ordre du roi, les rākṣasas prirent en main une lance (śūla) et une hache de guerre (paṭṭiśa), démembrèrent le coupable Gautama et le livrèrent aux dacoïts.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the exercise of royal authority in administering punishment and the moral tension it can create: even when an act is sanctioned by the king as justice, the means—extreme violence and outsourcing to fearsome agents—invites reflection on proportionality, compassion, and the ethical limits of coercive power within rājadharma.
Under the king’s order, rākṣasas armed with a spear and a battle-axe seize the sinful Gautama, cut him into pieces, and then hand him over to bandits (dasyus). Bhīṣma narrates this as part of a broader discourse on governance and punitive action.