Shloka 70

Devanagari script

कृप उवाच यदि मां नाभिगच्छेथा युद्धाय कृतनिश्चय: । शपेयं त्वां महाराज पराभावाय सर्वश:,कृपाचार्य बोले--महाराज! यदि युद्धका निश्चय कर लेनेपर तुम मेरे पास नहीं आते तो मैं तुम्हारी सर्वथा पराजय होनेके लिये तुम्हें शाप दे देता

Transliteration

kṛpa uvāca yadi māṃ nābhigacchethā yuddhāya kṛtaniścayaḥ | śapeyaṃ tvāṃ mahārāja parābhāvāya sarvaśaḥ ||

Translation

Kṛpa berkata: “Wahai raja agung, jika setelah bertekad untuk berperang engkau tidak datang kepadaku, nescaya aku akan menyumpahmu agar mengalami kekalahan yang menyeluruh.”

Word by Word

कृपःKripa

उवाचsaid

यदिif

माम्me

नnot

अभिगच्छेथाःyou should come to / approach

युद्धायfor battle

कृतनिश्चयःhaving made a firm resolve

शपेयम्I would curse

त्वाम्you

महाराजO great king

पराभावायfor defeat

सर्वशःentirely, in every way

Speaker

कृप उवाच

Characters & Entities

Kṛpa (Kṛpācārya)

Mahārāja (the king addressed)

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 the ethical weight of seeking proper counsel and guidance before entering war. A king who has resolved on battle must still approach elders/teachers; neglecting such counsel is portrayed as inviting ruin, even symbolically through a curse.

What is happening in the narrative?

Kṛpa addresses a king and states that if the king, despite deciding on war, had not come to him, Kṛpa would have pronounced a curse ensuring the king’s complete defeat—emphasizing Kṛpa’s authority and the seriousness of disregarding his guidance.