Shloka 16
धनंजय-दुर्योधन-संग्रामः
Arjuna–Duryodhana Engagement and Admonition
भ्रातरं घातयित्वा कस्त्यक्त्वा रणशिरक्ष कः । त्वदन्य: कः पुमान् सत्सु ब्रूयादेवं व्यवस्थित:,तेरे सिवा दूसरा कौन ऐसा पुरुष होगा, जो अपने भाईको मरवाकर और युद्धका मुहाना छोड़कर (भाग जानेके बाद भी) भलेमानसोंके बीचमें खड़ा हो ऐसी डींग मारेगा?
arjuna uvāca |
bhrātaraṃ ghātayitvā kas tyaktvā raṇaśiraskṛtaḥ kaḥ |
tvadanyaḥ kaḥ pumān satsu brūyād evaṃ vyavasthitaḥ ||
પોતાના ભાઈને મરાવીને અને રણમુખ છોડીને, છતાં સજ્જનોની વચ્ચે ઊભો રહી આવી બડાઈ કોણ મારી શકે? તારા સિવાય બીજો કયો પુરુષ આવી નિર્લજ્જ રીતે એમ કહી શકે?
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse condemns two linked moral failures—instigating a brother’s death and then fleeing the battle-front—followed by the added ethical offense of boasting among the virtuous. It frames honor and accountability in war as integral to dharma, and treats shameless self-justification as a serious moral lapse.
Arjuna is speaking in a confrontational tone, rebuking an opponent for having engineered fratricide and then abandoning the battlefield, yet still speaking proudly in the company of respectable people. The line functions as a pointed moral indictment meant to expose hypocrisy and cowardice.