Shloka 26
ऋषिसमागमः — युधिष्ठिरस्य शोकवर्णनम्
Sage Assembly and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Articulation of Grief
गता किल पृथा तस्य सकाशमिति न: श्रुतम्
gatā kila pṛthā tasya sakāśam iti naḥ śrutam | sandhiṃ kartum icchantī sā taṃ jagāda—“tvaṃ mama putraḥ” iti | kintu mahāmanāḥ karṇaḥ pṛthāyāḥ sāṃdhikām icchāṃ na pūrayām āsa ||
ਅਸੀਂ ਸੁਣਿਆ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਪૃਥਾ (ਕੁੰਤੀ) ਸਾਡੇ ਵਿਚ ਸਾਂਝ-ਸੁਲਹ ਕਰਵਾਉਣ ਦੀ ਇੱਛਾ ਨਾਲ ਉਸ (ਕਰਨ) ਕੋਲ ਗਈ ਅਤੇ ਕਿਹਾ—“ਤੂੰ ਮੇਰਾ ਪੁੱਤਰ ਹੈਂ।” ਪਰ ਮਹਾਮਨਸਵੀ ਕਰਨ ਨੇ ਮਾਤਾ ਕੁੰਤੀ ਦੀ ਸ਼ਾਂਤੀ-ਇੱਛਾ ਪੂਰੀ ਨਾ ਕੀਤੀ।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between truth, kinship, and chosen loyalty: even when a mother reveals a hidden bond and seeks peace, a warrior may refuse if he believes his pledged allegiance and prior commitments must be upheld—showing how dharma can appear as competing duties rather than a single clear rule.
Yudhiṣṭhira recalls a report that Kuntī went to Karna to prevent conflict by proposing reconciliation and revealing that he was her son; despite this, Karna did not accept her request to make peace, and the war-bound course remained unchanged.