Shloka 26
कण्वोपदेशः—नश्वरबलविवेकः तथा मातलिगुणकेश्याः आख्यानारम्भः
Kaṇva’s Counsel on Impermanent Power; Opening of the Mātali–Guṇakeśī Narrative
अब्रवीदेहि युद्धयस्व युद्धकामुक क्षत्रिय | सर्वशस्त्राणि चादत्स्व योजयस्व च वाहिनीम्,(संनहास्व च वर्माणि यानि चान्यानि सन्ति ते ।) अहं हि ते विनेष्यामि युद्धश्रद्धामित: परम् । (यदाद्वयसि दर्पेण ब्राह्मणप्रमुखाउ्जनान् ।।
abravīd ehi yudhyasva yuddha-kāmuka kṣatriya | sarva-śastrāṇi cādatsva yojayasva ca vāhinīm (saṃnahāsvā ca varmāṇi yāni cānyāni santi te) | ahaṃ hi te vineṣyāmi yuddha-śraddhām itaḥ param (yadādvayasi darpeṇa brāhmaṇa-pramukhān janān) ||
ラーマは言った。「来い——戦え、戦いへの欲に酔う刹帝利よ。あらゆる武器を取り、軍勢を整え、鎧を着け、持てる資を尽くせ。だが今、我は汝の“戦への自信”そのものを打ち砕く。汝は驕りにふくれ、婆羅門を先頭に人々へ挑んだ。ゆえに今日より、汝の好戦の決意を終わらせる。」
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
Arrogant aggression—especially when directed against the innocent and the socially protected (here, brahmins and others)—invites a corrective response. True kṣatriya power is not mere love of fighting; it must be governed by dharma, humility, and restraint.
Rama confronts a boastful, war-hungry kṣatriya and challenges him to prepare fully for battle—arms, armor, and army. Rama then declares he will shatter the opponent’s confidence in war because the man has been roaming about, proudly provoking brahmins and other people.