Shloka 243
शल्यस्य सेनापत्याभ्युपगमः | Śalya’s Acceptance of Command
कृपणं वर्तयिष्यामि कृपणै: सह जीविकाम् । “स्वयं बहुत-से भोग भोगकर और प्रचुर धन दान करके अब दीन पुरुषोंके साथ दीनतापूर्ण जीविकाका आश्रय ले किस प्रकार निर्वाह कर सकूँगा?
kṛpaṇaṁ vartayiṣyāmi kṛpaṇaiḥ saha jīvikām | svayaṁ bahu-śe bhogān bhuktvā ca pracuraṁ dhanaṁ dātvā ca idānīṁ dīna-puruṣaiḥ saha dīnatā-pūrṇāṁ jīvikām āśritya kathaṁ nirvāhaṁ kariṣyāmi?
Sañjaya berkata: “Bagaimana mungkin aku menyara diri dengan kehidupan yang hina lagi melarat bersama orang-orang melarat—sedangkan aku sendiri telah lama menikmati pelbagai kenikmatan dan juga telah mengurniakan harta yang banyak sebagai sedekah? Kini untuk berlindung pada hidup yang papa bersama kaum papa—bagaimana aku mampu meneruskannya?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the psychological and ethical tension between past prosperity and present hardship: attachment to former pleasures and status makes the acceptance of a humble livelihood feel unbearable. It implicitly points to the need for steadiness and detachment—recognizing that wealth and comfort are unstable, and that dignity in right conduct should not depend on external prosperity.
In Sañjaya’s narration during the Shalya Parva context, a speaker voices anxiety about survival after a reversal of fortune—wondering how, after having enjoyed many pleasures and having given away much wealth, he can now live among the destitute by adopting a destitute means of living.