Shloka 37
Yuddha-yajña-vyākhyāna (The Battle as Sacrifice): Ambarīṣa–Indra Saṃvāda
पत्नीशाला कृता यस्य परेषां वाहिनीमुखम्
patnīśālā kṛtā yasya pareṣāṃ vāhinīmukham
Ambarīṣa dit : «Quant à celui dont le “front de l’armée” est changé en “pavillon des épouses” — c’est-à-dire dont l’avant-garde guerrière est ravalée au rang d’un lieu de dépendance domestique et d’indulgence —, un tel homme ne peut se tenir fermement dans les devoirs du commandement et de la conduite juste.»
अम्बरीष उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a sharp metaphor to warn that a leader who lets sensuality or domestic indulgence dominate his public duty becomes unfit for steadfast, righteous leadership; self-mastery is presented as essential to dharma and governance.
In the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, Ambarīṣa speaks in a moralizing tone, criticizing a type of ruler/warrior whose military resolve is metaphorically ‘converted’ into a private pleasure-space, implying loss of discipline and public responsibility.