कर्णपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः | Karṇa Parva, Chapter 15: Pāṇḍya’s Advance and Aśvatthāmā’s Counterstroke
यदि मां मन्यसे वीर प्राप्तमहमिहातिथिम्
yadi māṃ manyase vīra prāptam aham ihātithim
ಸಂಜಯನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ಓ ವೀರನೇ! ನೀನು ನನನ್ನು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಬಂದ ಅತಿಥಿಯೆಂದು ಮನಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಇಟ್ಟಿದ್ದರೆ, ಅತಿಥಿ-ಧರ್ಮದಂತೆ ನನಗೆ ಯಥೋಚಿತ ಸತ್ಕಾರ ಮಾಡು.
संजय उवाच
The verse gestures to ātithi-dharma: if someone is accepted as a guest, they should be received with honor and appropriate conduct. It frames ethical obligation through the social-religious norm of hospitality.
Sañjaya addresses a warrior-leader as “hero” and positions himself as an arriving guest. The statement functions as a preface to being received, heard, or granted proper attention in the midst of the larger war-time setting of the Karṇa Parva.