Shloka 14
Gandhārī’s Lament for Bhūriśravas and Śakuni
Book 11, Chapter 24
ततः पापतरं कर्म कृतवानपि सात्यकि: । यस्मात् प्रायोपविष्टस्य प्राहार्षीत् संशितात्मन:
tataḥ pāpataraṃ karma kṛtavān api sātyakiḥ | yasmāt prāyopaviṣṭasya prāhārṣīt saṃśitātmanaḥ ||
Kemudian Sātyaki, walaupun sudah bersalah kerana perbuatan jahat, melakukan dosa yang lebih berat lagi—kerana dia menewaskan seorang yang menguasai diri, yang telah duduk dalam prāyopaveśa (berpuasa hingga mati), suatu sikap pelepasan diri, bukan untuk pertempuran.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a grave ethical boundary: harming someone engaged in prāyopaveśa (a renunciatory, penitential fast unto death) is portrayed as a deeper sin than ordinary wartime violence. It signals how adharma intensifies when violence disregards restraint, vulnerability, and sacred vows.
Vaiśampāyana reports that Sātyaki committed an even worse deed by striking a disciplined person who had undertaken prāyopaveśa—someone no longer acting as a combatant but as a penitent. The scene belongs to the post-war moral unraveling depicted in Strī Parva.