Shloka 26
अभिषक्तो हाभिषजेदाहन्याद् गुरुणा हतः । एवं विनाशो भूतानामथधर्म: प्रथितो भवेत्,यदि कोई अपनेको सतावे तो स्वयं भी उसको सतावे। औरोंकी तो बात ही कया है, यदि गुरुजन अपनेको मारें तो उन्हें भी मारे बिना न छोड़े; ऐसी धारणा रखनेके कारण सब प्राणियोंका ही विनाश हो जाता है और अधर्म बढ़ जाता है
abhiśakto hābhiṣajed āhanyād guruṇā hataḥ | evaṁ vināśo bhūtānām atha dharmaḥ prathito bhavet ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “If one who is cursed were to retaliate with a curse, and if one struck were to strike back—even against a revered teacher who harms him—then such a principle would lead to the destruction of all beings. In that way, what is truly adharma would come to be celebrated as ‘dharma.’”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Unrestricted retaliation—answering curse with curse and violence with violence, even against elders—destroys social and moral order; it makes adharma appear as dharma. The verse argues for restraint and reverence as safeguards of dharma.
Yudhiṣṭhira reflects on the consequences of adopting retaliation as a rule of conduct. He warns that if everyone responds in kind to harm, including harm from revered teachers, society collapses into mutual destruction and moral confusion.