Shloka 87
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
वर्ध हायं पाण्डव धर्मराज- स्त्वत्तो<्युक्तं वेत्स्यते चैवमेष: | ततो<स्य पादावभिवाद्य पश्चात् सम॑ ब्रूया: सान्त्वयित्वा च पार्थम्
vardha hāyaṁ pāṇḍava dharmarājaḥ tvatto 'nyuktaṁ vetsyate caivam eṣaḥ | tato 'sya pādāv abhivādya paścāt samaṁ brūyāḥ sāntvayitvā ca pārtham, pāṇḍunandana |
“Wahai putra Pāṇḍu, bila engkau mengucapkan kata yang tak patut itu, Dharmarāja akan menganggapnya seakan-akan ia telah terbunuh. Karena itu, sesudahnya bersujudlah pada kakinya; lalu, setelah menenangkannya, mintalah ampun dan berbicaralah kepadanya dengan kata-kata yang adil.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in crisis, one must restrain harsh or improper speech, especially toward the righteous and respected. If a wrong word is spoken, dharma requires humility—saluting, consoling, and seeking forgiveness—followed by balanced, just speech.
Vāyudeva instructs Arjuna about how to deal with Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) after an inappropriate remark: Yudhiṣṭhira will feel mortally wounded by such words, so Arjuna should bow at his feet, console him, ask pardon, and then speak in a fair and dharmic manner.