Shloka 16
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 73 — Kr̥ṣṇa’s Appraisal of Bhīma’s Altered Temper and Reaffirmation of Martial Resolve
सहजकश्नेदिमत्स्यानां प्रवीराणां वृषध्वज: । धारणभश्रन्द्रवत्सानां मुकुटानां विगाहन:
sahajakāś cedi-matsyānāṁ pravīrāṇāṁ vṛṣadhvajaḥ | dhāraṇo bhāśrāndravatsānāṁ mukuṭānāṁ vigāhanaḥ ||
Bhīma dit : «Dans les terres de Cedi et de Matsya parut Sahaja ; parmi les Pravīra, Vṛṣadhvaja ; dans la lignée (dite) Cāndravatsa, Dhāraṇa ; et parmi les Mukuṭa, Vigāhana. Ainsi, lorsque le dharma est renversé et que l’ordre du monde vacille, des forces féroces et funestes s’embrasent ; de même, à l’approche de la fin d’un âge, des kṣatriya déchus surgissent dans divers clans—apportant la discorde et l’effondrement moral plutôt que la protection.»
भीम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames ethical decay as a social and political phenomenon: when dharma is disrupted, rulers who should protect society instead become sources of conflict. Genealogical listing is used to mark the spread of such ‘age-ending’ degeneration across many lineages.
Bhīma is speaking within the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war context, invoking examples of notorious or ruinous kṣatriyas said to arise in different clans during times of upheaval, thereby warning of widespread disorder and the consequences of adharma.