Shloka 2636
क्षमावन्तं हि पापात्मा जितो5यमिति मन्यते । यद्यपि लोकमें क्षमाभावकी प्रशंसा की जाती है, तथापि पापात्मा मनुष्य कभी क्षमाके योग्य नहीं है; क्योंकि क्षमा कर देनेपर वह पापात्मा क्षमाशील पुरुषको ऐसा समझ लेता है कि “यह मुझसे हार गया”
kṣamāvantaṃ hi pāpātmā jito ’yam iti manyate |
Dhṛṣṭadyumna said: “A sinful-minded man, when met with forbearance, imagines, ‘This person has been defeated by me.’ Though the world praises forgiveness as a virtue, a wicked person is not truly fit to be forgiven, for once pardoned he takes the patient man to be one who has yielded in weakness.”
धृष्टह्युम्न उवाच
Educational Q&A
Forgiveness is praised as a virtue, but Dhṛṣṭadyumna warns that toward the truly wicked it can be misread as weakness; ethical action must consider the recipient’s character and the likely consequences.
In the war context of the Droṇa Parva, Dhṛṣṭadyumna argues against showing leniency to an evil-minded opponent, asserting that such a person will interpret pardon as having defeated the forgiving party.