Shloka 323

अध्याय ९ — धृतराष्ट्रस्य युधिष्ठिरं प्रति राजनित्युपदेशः

Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Counsel on Royal Policy to Yudhiṣṭhira

Devanagari script

कर्तव्यं निधन काले मर्तव्यं क्षत्रबन्धुना । “नरेश्वर! ऐसा विकट संहार दैवीशक्तिके बिना कदापि नहीं हो सकता था। अवश्य ही संग्राममें मनुष्यको विशेषत: क्षत्रियको समयानुसार शत्रुओंका संहार एवं प्राणोत्सर्ग करना चाहिये

Transliteration

kartavyaṁ nidhana-kāle martavyaṁ kṣatra-bandhunā |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Pada saat ajal, seorang kṣatriya wajib menunaikan apa yang patut ditunaikan; bahkan yang sekadar ‘kerabat kṣatriya’ pun hendaklah bersedia mati. Pembantaian yang begitu dahsyat tidak mungkin berlaku tanpa kuasa Ilahi. Maka di medan perang, seorang insan—terutama seorang pahlawan—hendaklah menurut waktu dan keadaan, menumpaskan musuh dan, jika perlu, menyerahkan nyawanya sendiri.”

Word by Word

कर्तव्यम्to be done; duty (is to be done)

निधनकालेat the time of death

मर्तव्यम्to be died; one must die

क्षत्रबन्धुनाby a kshatriya (lit. ‘kinsman of the kshatra’; a warrior)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores kṣatriya-dharma: in the face of death and in battle, a warrior must act according to duty—ready both to strike down enemies when warranted and to relinquish life when the situation demands—while recognizing that catastrophic outcomes may also reflect divine agency beyond human control.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana comments on the enormity of the slaughter, attributing its scale to divine power, and frames the event within the moral code of warfare: for warriors, timely combat, enemy-destruction, and even self-sacrifice are presented as appropriate conduct.