Shloka 19
Chapter 59: Baladeva’s Censure, Keśava’s Restraint, and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Moral Accounting
विध्वस्तो5यं हतामात्यो हतभ्राता हतप्रज: । उत्सन्नपिण्डो भ्राता च नैतन्न्याय्यं कृतं त्वया
vidhvasto ’yaṁ hatāmātyo hatabhrātā hataprajaḥ | utsannapiṇḍo bhrātā ca naitannyāyyaṁ kṛtaṁ tvayā ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Orang ini telah musnah sama sekali—para menterinya terbunuh, saudaranya terbunuh, dan rakyatnya pun dibinasakan. Rantaian persembahan piṇḍa telah terputus; tiada lagi yang tinggal untuk mempersembahkan piṇḍa baginya. Lagipun, dia adalah saudara kita sendiri. Apa yang engkau lakukan terhadapnya bukanlah adil, tidak selaras dengan yang benar.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid war, actions are judged by dharma and nyāya: destroying a kinsman’s support-system (ministers, kin, subjects) and cutting off his ritual continuity (piṇḍa/śrāddha) is portrayed as ethically improper, especially when the victim is ‘our own brother’.
Sañjaya reports a moral protest: someone has been thoroughly devastated—his advisers, brother, and people have been killed, leaving him without anyone to perform funeral rites. Sañjaya condemns the deed as unjust and emphasizes the bond of brotherhood.