Shloka 8
अनवाप्य शमं तत्र कृष्ण: पुरुषसत्तम: | आगच्छत महाबाहुरुपप्लव्यं जनाधिप,नरेश्वर! किंतु राजा धृतराष्ट्रने भगवानका कहना नहीं माना। यह सब बात पहले यथार्थरूपसे बतायी गयी है। महाबाहु पुरुषोत्तम भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण वहाँ संधि करानेमें सफलता न मिलनेपर पुनः उपप्लव्यमें ही लौट आये
anavāpya śamaṃ tatra kṛṣṇaḥ puruṣasattamaḥ | āgacchat mahābāhur upaplavyaṃ janādhipa naraśvara ||
Vaiśampāyana said: There, Kṛṣṇa—the best of men, mighty-armed—having failed to secure peace, returned to Upaplavya, O lord of the people, O king. The verse underscores the ethical gravity of attempted reconciliation: even when a righteous envoy strives for concord, peace cannot be achieved if those in power refuse wise counsel, and the path toward war becomes harder to avert.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Peace requires receptivity to righteous counsel; even the best-intentioned mediation fails when rulers reject wise advice, increasing moral accountability for the ensuing conflict.
Kṛṣṇa, after attempting to bring about śama (peace) and not succeeding, returns to the Pāṇḍavas’ base at Upaplavya; the narrator Vaiśampāyana reports this to the kingly listener.