Shloka 68
धृष्टद्युम्नस्य द्रोणाभिमुख्यं तथा सात्यकि-कर्ण-समागमः
Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s advance toward Droṇa and the Sātyaki–Karṇa confrontation
सर्वकालं मनुष्येण व्यवसायवता सदा । पीडाकरममित्राणां यत् स्यात् कर्तव्यमेव तत्,महर्षि वाल्मीकिने पूर्वकालमें ही इस भूतलपर एक श्लोकका गान किया है। जिसका भावार्थ इस प्रकार है--“वानर! तुम जो यह कहते हो कि स्त्रियोंका वध नहीं करना चाहिये, उसके उत्तरमें मेरा यह कहना है कि उद्योगी मनुष्यके लिये सदा सब समय वह कार्य करने ही योग्य माना गया है, जो शत्रुओंको पीड़ा देनेवाला हो”
sarvakālaṃ manuṣyeṇa vyavasāyavatā sadā | pīḍākaraṃ amitrāṇāṃ yat syāt kartavyam eva tat ||
Sañjaya said: “At all times, for a person of firm resolve and enterprise, that deed alone is to be done which brings affliction to one’s enemies.” (The passage is framed as an old maxim attributed to Vālmīki, used to justify harsh measures in conflict by appealing to the ethic of relentless, results-driven warfare.)
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse advances a hardline, pragmatic war-ethic: a determined person should do what effectively harms the enemy. It prioritizes strategic efficacy over softer moral restraints, presenting this as a maxim of resolute action.
Sañjaya reports a proverbial statement (attributed to Vālmīki in the accompanying prose) to support an argument in a tense wartime context—namely, that in conflict one should undertake actions that cause suffering to enemies, even when objections based on moral scruples are raised.