Shloka 23
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
प्राणिनामवधस्तात सर्वज्यायान् मतो मम । अनृतां वा वदेद् वाचं न तु हिंस्थात् कथंचन
prāṇinām avadhas tāta sarvajyāyān mato mama | anṛtāṃ vā vaded vācaṃ na tu hiṃsyāt kathaṃcana ||
Kṛṣṇa berkata: “Wahai yang terkasih, menurut penilaianku, jalan tertinggi dari semuanya adalah ini: jangan membunuh makhluk hidup. Jika demi menyelamatkan nyawa seseorang harus mengucapkan kata yang tidak benar, ucapkanlah—namun jangan sekali-kali melakukan kekerasan terhadapnya.”
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse prioritizes protection of life (ahiṃsā/avadha) as the highest ethical duty, even above strict truth-telling; if a false statement is necessary to save a life, it is permitted, but harming a living being is not.
In the Karṇa Parva’s war context, Śrī Kṛṣṇa instructs his listener with a moral principle suited to crisis: when duties conflict, preserving life is to be treated as paramount, and speech may be adjusted accordingly, but violence must be avoided.