Shloka 19
उद्योगपर्व (अध्याय १२९) — केशवस्य वैभवप्रदर्शनम् / Krishna’s Theophanic Display in the Kuru Assembly
इमं हि पुण्डरीकाक्षमभिभूय प्रसहु च
imaṃ hi puṇḍarīkākṣam abhibhūya prasahu ca
Car, après avoir maîtrisé ce Lotus-aux-yeux — oui, par la seule contrainte — (il agit ainsi). Le vers souligne un instant lourd d’enjeu moral : le « lotus-aux-yeux », signe de noblesse et de retenue, n’est pas abordé par la persuasion ni par une conduite guidée par le dharma, mais soumis par la force, révélant la tension entre le juste conseil et l’élan de domination.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral contrast between dharma-based engagement and domination by force: overpowering a noble ‘lotus-eyed’ figure suggests a lapse from ethical restraint into coercion, a recurring warning in the Udyoga Parva’s diplomacy-and-war setting.
Vaiśaṃpāyana reports that someone subdues the ‘lotus-eyed’ person by force. The line is fragmentary on its own, but it functions as a narrative hinge emphasizing an act of overpowering rather than reconciliation, consistent with the Udyoga Parva’s escalating breakdown of peace efforts.