Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
भ्रातृभि: सहित: सर्व: सोमकैश्व सकेकयै: । कथं वा धार्मिको भूत्वा त्वमधर्मे मन: कृथा:
bhrātṛbhiḥ sahitaḥ sarvaḥ somakaiś ca kekayaiḥ | kathaṃ vā dhārmiko bhūtvā tvam adharme manaḥ kṛthāḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Raja, engkau berdiri bersama semua saudaramu, beserta kaum Somaka dan Kekaya, seakan-akan seorang yang teguh pada dharma. Bagaimana mungkin, setelah mengaku dharmika, engkau mengarahkan pikiranmu kepada adharma?”
संजय उवाच
A claim to righteousness must be consistent with one’s intentions and choices; aligning the mind with adharma—especially in matters leading to conflict—undermines the very identity of being dhārmika.
Sanjaya addresses the king (Dhritarashtra), pointing out the contradiction between appearing righteous—surrounded by allies and kin—and harboring intentions that support unrighteous action, in the tense lead-up to the Kurukshetra war.