Shloka 68
श्रेयो-धर्मकर्मविचारः
Inquiry into Śreyas, Dharma, and Karma
वयं तु भृशमापन्ना रक्ता दुःखसुखे5सुखे । कां गतिं प्रतिपत्स्यामो नीलां कृष्णाधमामथ
vayaṁ tu bhṛśam āpannā raktā duḥkha-sukhe 'sukhe | kāṁ gatiṁ pratipatsyāmo nīlāṁ kṛṣṇādhamām atha ||
ຢຸທິສຖິຣະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ແຕ່ພວກເຮົານີ້ ກໍາລັງຕົກຢູ່ໃນຄວາມທຸກຍາກຢ່າງໜັກ. ພວກເຮົາຍຶດຕິດກັບພາວະທີ່ປົນກັນລະຫວ່າງທຸກແລະສຸກ ຫຼືກັບທຸກລ້ວນໆ. ໃນສະພາບແບບນີ້ ຊະຕາກໍາຂອງພວກເຮົາຈະເປັນແນວໃດ? ພວກເຮົາຈະຕົກໄປເກີດເປັນມະນຸດ ‘ສີນໍ້າເງິນ/ສີຟ້າ’ ຫຼືຈະຈົມລົງສູ່ພາວະທີ່ມືດດໍາ ແລະຕໍ່າຕໍ່າ—ຕໍ່າກວ່າແມ່ນແຕ່ຮູບຊີວິດທີ່ຢູ່ນິ່ງ (ສະຖາວະ) ອີກຫຼື?»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Attachment to suffering (or to a confused mix of pleasure and pain) is itself a moral and spiritual danger: it clouds discernment and raises anxiety about one’s karmic ‘gati’ (destiny). The verse voices the ethical insight that inner fixation and despair can be as consequential as outward acts, and that one should seek clarity, restraint, and dharmic orientation rather than being driven by grief.
In Śānti Parva’s reflective setting after the devastation of the war, Yudhiṣṭhira expresses deep distress and self-doubt. He fears that the Pandavas’ present mental state—overwhelmed and attached to painful emotions—may lead to a degraded destiny, and he asks what kind of rebirth or post-mortem course could await them.