Shloka 523
विशेषतस्तु शपथं शपित्वा राजसंसदि । शत्रुके हाथसे पिता और पुत्रका वध पाकर, विशेषत: राजाओंकी मण्डलीमें शपथ खाकर कौन पुरुष उस शत्रुकी रक्षा करेगा?
viśeṣatas tu śapathaṁ śapitvā rājasansadi | śatruke hātase pitā ca putrasya ca vadhaṁ prāpya, viśeṣataḥ rājamaṇḍalī-madhye śapathaṁ kṛtvā kaḥ pumān tasya śatroḥ rakṣāṁ kariṣyati? |
Bhīmasena said: “After a father and a son have been slain by that enemy, and after a solemn oath has been sworn—especially in the assembly of kings—what man would still protect that enemy? Such a pledge, made before rulers, binds one’s honor and duty to requital rather than sheltering the offender.”
भीमसेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A vow sworn publicly—especially before kings—creates a binding moral and social obligation. Bhīma argues that after grievous wrongdoing (the slaying of father and son), protecting the offender would violate honor and the duty implied by such an oath.
Bhīmasena is speaking in a war-context, invoking a prior oath taken in the royal assembly. He frames the enemy’s act (killing a father and son) as so grave that no honorable man, bound by a public pledge, could justify shielding that enemy from consequences.