Virāṭa-sabhāyāṃ Saṃniveśaḥ — Assembly at Virāṭa’s Hall and Kṛṣṇa’s Diplomatic Counsel
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच सर्वेर्भवद्धिर्विंदितं यथायं युधिष्ठिर: सौबलेनाक्षवत्याम् । जितो निकृत्यापद्वतं च राज्यं वनप्रवासे समय: कृतश्न
śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca | sarvair bhavadbhir viditaṃ yathāyaṃ yudhiṣṭhiraḥ saubalenākṣavatyām | jito nikṛtyāpahṛtaṃ ca rājyaṃ vanapravāse samayaḥ kṛtaś ca ||
シュリー・クリシュナは言った。「ここに集う友よ、汝らは皆知っている。賭博の広間において、このユディシュティラがサウバラ(シャクニ)に欺計をもって打ち負かされ、国を奪われたことを。さらに、その敗北の帰結として、森への流謫という拘束の条件が定められたことも。」
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच
The verse frames the ethical breach at the root of the conflict: a righteous king is dispossessed not by fair contest but by nikṛti (fraud). It highlights how adharma in procedure (deceitful means) corrupts outcomes and creates binding yet tragic consequences (the exile agreement), setting the moral ground for later demands for justice.
Kṛṣṇa begins addressing the assembled allies and elders, reminding them of the well-known event: Śakuni’s deceptive victory over Yudhiṣṭhira in the dice-hall, the seizure of the Pāṇḍavas’ kingdom, and the stipulation that followed—forest exile as the agreed consequence of the loss.