Shloka 43
Adhyāya 128 — Proposal to Restrain Keśava; Sātyaki’s Warning and Vidura–Dhṛtarāṣṭra Counsel
प्रयच्छ पाण्डुपुत्राणां यथोचितमरिंदम । यदीच्छसि सहामात्यो भोक्तुमर्ध प्रदीयताम्
vaiśampāyana uvāca | prayaccha pāṇḍuputrāṇāṃ yathocitam ariṃdama | yadīcchasi sahāmātyo bhoktum ardhaṃ pradīyatām ||
वैशम्पायन बोले—हे शत्रुदमन! पाण्डुपुत्रों को उनका यथोचित भाग दे दो। यदि तुम मन्त्रियों सहित राज्य भोगना चाहते हो, तो उन्हें आधा राज्य दे दिया जाए।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler’s legitimacy rests on giving others their rightful due (yathocitam). Refusing a just share out of greed invites adharma and makes destructive conflict morally and politically inevitable.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war negotiations, counsel is being offered to the Kuru side: if they want stable enjoyment of sovereignty, they should concede an appropriate share—explicitly half the kingdom—to the Pāṇḍavas, thereby restoring justice and avoiding war.