Shloka 49
अध्याय २९ — वासुदेव–संजय संवादः
Karma, Varṇa-Dharma, and the Ethics of Governance
न विद्यते युक्तिरेतस्य काचि- न्नैवंविधा: स्याम यथा प्रियं ते । ददस्व वा शक्रपुरी ममैव युध्यस्व वा भारतमुख्य वीर
na vidyate yuktir etasya kācin naivaṃvidhāḥ syāma yathā priyaṃ te | dadasva vā śakrapurī mamaiva yudhyasva vā bhāratamukhya vīra ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Tiada suatu siasat pun yang dapat menunaikan hasratmu itu. Kami bukanlah lelaki yang menjadi selemah itu hingga membiarkan perkara yang engkau kasihi tercapai dengan mengorbankan kami. Maka, wahai wira terunggul kaum Bhārata, kembalikan kepadaku Śakrapurī (Indraprastha) itu sendiri, atau berperanglah.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic boundary in political conflict: peace is possible only through restitution of rightful sovereignty; when injustice is entrenched as a ‘desire’ for unchecked rule, there is no ethical ‘means’ to satisfy it, and a kṣatriya must be prepared to defend justice even by war.
Yudhiṣṭhira, speaking through the envoy Sañjaya to Duryodhana, rejects Duryodhana’s ambition for unopposed Kaurava rule and issues a clear ultimatum: return Indraprastha to the Pāṇḍavas, or face battle.