Shloka 50
Adhyāya 128 — Proposal to Restrain Keśava; Sātyaki’s Warning and Vidura–Dhṛtarāṣṭra Counsel
अमर्षवशमापतन्नो मा कुरूंस्तात जीघन: । एषा हि पृथिवी कृत्स्ना मा गमत् त्वत्कृते वधम्,“तात! तुम क्रोधके वशीभूत होकर समस्त कौरवोंका वध न कराओ। तुम्हारे लिये इस सम्पूर्ण भूमण्डलका विनाश न हो
amarṣavaśam āpatanno mā kurūṃs tāta jīghanaḥ | eṣā hi pṛthivī kṛtsnā mā gamat tvatkṛte vadham ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai anak, jangan, dikuasai amarah, engkau menyebabkan pembantaian seluruh kaum Kuru. Jangan biarkan seluruh bumi ini, kerana dirimu, menuju kebinasaan.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns against letting anger govern action: personal grievance must not justify disproportionate violence that harms society at large. Ethical restraint (dharma) requires weighing consequences beyond oneself, especially when one’s power could lead to widespread destruction.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war tensions, the narrator reports an admonition addressed tenderly as “tāta,” urging someone not to unleash a total massacre of the Kurus in a fit of rage, and not to let the whole world be ruined on that person’s account.