Shloka 16

धर्म्यविजय-नियमाः

Rules for Dharmic Victory in Kṣatriya Engagement

Devanagari script

कर्म चैतदसाधूनामसाधून्‌ साधुना जयेत्‌

Transliteration

karma caitad asādhūnām asādhūn sādhunā jayet

Translation

Inilah tindakan yang tepat terhadap orang jahat: orang saleh hendaknya menaklukkan yang tak saleh dengan jalan dharma.

Word by Word

• कर्म: deed, action
• कर्म: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: एतद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• असाधूनाम्: of the wicked (unsaintly people)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असाधु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• असाधून्: the wicked (persons)
• असाधून्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: असाधु
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• साधुना: by a good (man), by the virtuous
• साधुना: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: साधु
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• जयेत्: should conquer, should overcome
• Type: Verb
• Root: जि
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

One should not adopt the methods of the wicked to defeat them; the ethical ideal is that a virtuous person prevails over wrongdoing through virtue and righteous conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and governance; here he states a normative principle about dealing with unrighteous people—victory should be achieved through sādhutā (righteousness), not through adharma.