Shloka 26
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 47 — Arjuna’s Deterrent Declaration
Sañjaya’s Report
त्यक्तात्मान: पार्थिवा योधनाय समादिष्टा धर्मराजेन सूत । रथै: शुभ्रे: सैन्यमभिद्रवन्तो दृष्टवा पश्चात् तप्स्यते धार्तराष्ट्र:
sañjaya uvāca |
tyaktātmānaḥ pārthivā yodhanāya samādiṣṭā dharmarājena sūta |
rathaiḥ śubhrair sainyam abhidravantō dṛṣṭvā paścāt tapsyate dhārtarāṣṭraḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Sūta, apabila raja-raja di bumi—yang telah mengetepikan rasa sayang akan nyawa sendiri—diperintah oleh Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) untuk berperang, lalu menaiki kereta-kereta yang gemilang dan meluru menyerang bala Kaurava, maka Dhārtarāṣṭra (Duryodhana), melihat mereka, akan kemudian terbakar oleh penyesalan yang pahit kerana memilih perang.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Choosing adharma and provoking war leads to inevitable moral and psychological consequence: when righteous resolve and collective duty manifest on the battlefield, the instigator (Duryodhana) is foretold to experience searing remorse. The verse frames war not as glory but as a burden whose ethical weight returns upon the wrongdoer.
Sañjaya predicts to the Sūta that once Yudhiṣṭhira orders battle, many kings devoted to his cause—ready to sacrifice their lives—will charge the Kaurava forces in splendid chariots. Seeing this formidable onrush, Duryodhana (Dhārtarāṣṭra) will later regret having driven events toward war.