Shloka 9
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Lament for Karṇa and Renunciation-Oriented Self-Assessment (शोक-प्रलापः / त्याग-प्रवृत्तिः)
हाय! हमलोगोंने इस तुच्छ पृथ्वीके लिये अवध्य राजाओंकी भी हत्या की और अब उन्हें छोड़कर बन्धु-बान्धवोंसे हीन हो अर्थ-भ्रष्टकी भाँति जीवन व्यतीत कर रहे हैं
hāy! vayaṁ etasyāḥ tucchāyāḥ pṛthivyāḥ kṛte ’vadhyānām api rājñāṁ vadhaṁ kṛtavantaḥ; adhunā tu tān vihāya bandhu-bāndhava-hīnāḥ san artha-bhraṣṭa iva jīvanaṁ yāpayāmaḥ.
ああ、嘆かわしい！ この取るに足らぬ大地のために、殺してはならぬ王たちさえ我らは討った。いまや彼らを失い、親族も味方も欠いて、運を失った者のように、支えなき日々を空しく過ごしている。
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical reckoning after violence: worldly sovereignty (pṛthivī/kingdom) is portrayed as a small gain when purchased by adharma-like acts such as killing those deemed ‘avadhya’. It stresses that the fruits of such action are not only political but deeply personal—loss of kinship networks, inner peace, and a sense of meaningful life.
Yudhiṣṭhira laments the aftermath of the great war: in striving for rule over the earth, the victors have caused the death of many kings and now find themselves isolated and grief-stricken, living without the support of relatives and allies, as if ruined—despite having ‘won’ the kingdom.