Shloka 28
न त्वयं पार्थिवेन्द्राणामपमान: प्रयुज्यते । त्वामेव कुरवो व्यक्त प्रलम्भन्ते जनार्दन
na tvayaṃ pārthivendrāṇām apamānaḥ prayujyate | tvām eva kuravo vyakta pralambhante janārdana |
Śiśupāla berkata: “Perbuatan ini sebenarnya bukanlah suatu penghinaan terhadap raja-raja di bumi. Bahkan, wahai Janārdana, engkaulah yang nyata-nyata sedang diperdaya oleh kaum Kuru—dengan mereka mempersembahkan arghya kepadamu dan mengisytiharkan engkau sebagai yang terutama.”
शिशुपाल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how honor can be weaponized in politics: Śiśupāla reframes Kṛṣṇa’s foremost worship not as an affront to other kings, but as a manipulative act by the Kurus—showing how envy and rivalry distort ethical judgment and public speech.
During Yudhiṣṭhira’s royal rite/assembly where Kṛṣṇa is offered the first honor (agrāpūjā) and arghya, Śiśupāla objects. He argues that the kings are not insulted; instead, the Kuru party is, in his view, merely flattering and deceiving Kṛṣṇa by granting him precedence.