Shloka 12
भीष्मस्य दुर्योधनं प्रति कुलहितोपदेशः | Bhīṣma’s Counsel to Duryodhana on Dynastic Welfare
उपनहा परैवरं ये मां नित्यमुपासते । नमस्कुर्वन्ति च सदा वसवो वासवं यथा,शत्रुओंसे वैर बाँधकर जो नित्य मेरी उपासना करते हैं तथा जैसे वसुगण इन्द्रको प्रणाम करते हैं, उसी प्रकार जो सदा मुझे मस्तक झुकाते हैं, मेरी ही प्राणशक्तिके भरोसे जो शत्रुओंके सामने डटकर खड़े होनेका साहस करते हैं और इसी आशासे जो मेरा आदर करते हैं, उनके मनोरथको मैं छिन्न-भिन्न कैसे करूँ?
upanahā paraivaraṁ ye māṁ nityam upāsate | namaskurvanti ca sadā vasavo vāsavaṁ yathā |
Karna berkata: “Mereka yang mengikat permusuhan terhadap musuh-musuhku lalu sentiasa bersandar kepadaku; mereka yang menundukkan kepala kepadaku sebagaimana para Vasu bersujud kepada Vāsava (Indra); mereka yang, bersandar pada daya hidupku sendiri, berani berdiri teguh di hadapan musuh dan memuliakanku dengan harapan itu—bagaimana mungkin aku menghancurkan cita-cita yang mereka junjung?”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Karna frames an ethical obligation of a protector: when people place their trust, honor, and courage in a leader’s strength, it becomes morally difficult for that leader to betray their expectations. Loyalty and responsibility to dependents are presented as binding duties.
In Udyoga Parva, Karna is speaking about those who align themselves with him against his enemies and continually honor him. He argues that since they rely on him for courage and success, he cannot bring himself to frustrate their hopes—implying his resolve to stand by his side and commitments in the coming conflict.