Shloka 21
Bhīṣma Parva, Adhyāya 4 — Dhṛtarāṣṭra–Vyāsa Saṃvāda on Kāla and Jayalakṣaṇa
Signs of Victory
यस्य भूमिस्तस्य सर्व जगत् स्थावरजड्भमम् । तत्रातिगृद्धा राजानो विनिधघ्नन्तीतरेतरम्,जिसके अधिकारमें भूमि है, उसीके अधिकारमें सम्पूर्ण चराचर जगत् है, इसीलिये भूमिके प्रति आसक्ति रखनेवाले राजालोग एक-दूसरेको मारते हैं
yasya bhūmis tasya sarvaṃ jagat sthāvara-jaṅgamam | tatrātigṛddhā rājāno vinighnanti itaretaram ||
Sañjaya said: ‘He who possesses the land is deemed to possess the whole world of moving and unmoving beings. Therefore kings, consumed by excessive greed for territory, strike down one another.’
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse critiques territorial greed: treating land as ownership of the entire living world leads rulers to justify violence. It highlights how attachment to power and property becomes a root cause of adharma and mutual destruction.
Sañjaya is explaining to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the underlying motive that drives kings into conflict—covetousness for land—framing the coming slaughter as fueled by political desire rather than true righteousness.