Shloka 48
अध्याय २९ — वासुदेव–संजय संवादः
Karma, Varṇa-Dharma, and the Ethics of Governance
इदं पुनर्वचन धार्त॑राष्ट्र सुयोधनं संजय श्रावयेथा: । यस्ते शरीरे हृदयं दुनोति काम: कुरूनसपत्नो<नुशिष्याम्
idaṃ punarvacanaṃ dhārtarāṣṭra suyodhanaṃ saṃjaya śrāvayethāḥ | yas te śarīre hṛdayaṃ dunoti kāmaḥ kurūn asapatno 'nuśiṣyām, saṃjaya |
“Saṃjaya, ulangi sekali lagi pesanku ini kepada Suyodhana, putera Dhṛtarāṣṭra: ‘Keinginan yang timbul dalam dirimu—untuk memerintah kaum Kuru tanpa saingan—hanya menyeksa hatimu. Tiada jalan untuk menunaikannya. Kami bukanlah orang yang lemah tekad sehingga membiarkan apa yang engkau dambakan tercapai. Wahai wira utama keturunan Bharata: pulangkan Indraprastha kepadaku, atau pilihlah perang.’”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Unrestrained desire for unrivalled power (kāma) becomes self-torment and leads to ruin; righteous kingship requires restraint and fairness. When a just claim is denied, a kṣatriya may issue a final ethical ultimatum: restore what is due or face war.
Yudhiṣṭhira instructs Sañjaya to deliver a firm message to Duryodhana: his ambition to rule the Kurus without rival is impossible to realize without causing conflict; therefore he must return Indraprastha to the Pāṇḍavas, otherwise war will follow.