Shloka 28
सभा पर्व, अध्याय ३७ — युधिष्ठिरस्य भीष्मोपदेशः
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Consultation and Bhīṣma’s Counsel in the Assembly
न त्वयं पार्थिवेन्द्राणामपमान: प्रयुज्यते । त्वामेव कुरवो व्यक्त प्रलम्भन्ते जनार्दन,कृष्ण! तुम्हारी इस अग्रपूजासे हम राजाधिराजोंका कोई अपमान नहीं होता, परंतु ये कुरुवंशी पाण्डव तुम्हें अर्घ्य देकर वास्तवमें तुम्हींको ठग रहे हैं
na tvayaṃ pārthivendrāṇām apamānaḥ prayujyate | tvām eva kuravo vyakta pralambhante janārdana |
シシュパーラは言った。「この行いは、地上の諸王を真に侮辱するものではない。むしろ、ジャナールダナよ、クル族は明らかにそなたを欺いているのだ――アルギャを捧げ、そなたを第一の者と宣言してな。」
शिशुपाल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how honor can be weaponized in politics: Śiśupāla reframes Kṛṣṇa’s foremost worship not as an affront to other kings, but as a manipulative act by the Kurus—showing how envy and rivalry distort ethical judgment and public speech.
During Yudhiṣṭhira’s royal rite/assembly where Kṛṣṇa is offered the first honor (agrāpūjā) and arghya, Śiśupāla objects. He argues that the kings are not insulted; instead, the Kuru party is, in his view, merely flattering and deceiving Kṛṣṇa by granting him precedence.