Shloka 7
Koṭikāśya’s Inquiry to the Radiant Woman near the Kadamba (कोटिकाश्यप्रश्नः)
त॑ मोक्षयत भद्रें व: सहदारं नराधिपम्
taṁ mokṣayata bhadreṁ vaḥ sahadāraṁ narādhipam
Duryodhana said: “Release that king, together with his wife. May good befall you.” In the narrative frame, the command carries a calculated show of magnanimity—an outwardly courteous act meant to project authority and control, while the ethical tension lies in how ‘mercy’ can be used as a political instrument rather than a purely dharmic impulse.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how acts resembling compassion—such as ordering a captive’s release—can function within royal politics as displays of dominance and reputation-management. It invites reflection on the difference between genuine dharmic mercy and strategic ‘benevolence’ used to secure prestige or advantage.
Duryodhana issues an order to others (plural imperative) to free a king, explicitly including the king’s wife, and adds a conventional benediction (“bhadraṁ vaḥ”—‘good to you’). The line reads as a public directive, signaling control over the captive’s fate.