Shloka 14
Adhyāya 33 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Post-Conflict Remorse and Inquiry on Āśrama Discipline (शोक-विमर्शः, आश्रम-जिज्ञासा)
व्यास उवाच मा विषादं कृथा राजन क्षत्रधर्ममनुस्मरन् । स्वधर्मेण हता द्ोते क्षत्रिया: क्षत्रियर्षभ
vyāsa uvāca mā viṣādaṁ kṛthā rājan kṣatradharmam anusmaran | svadharmeṇa hatā hy ete kṣatriyāḥ kṣatriyarṣabha ||
ਵਿਆਸ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ— ਹੇ ਰਾਜਨ, ਹੇ ਖ਼ਸ਼ਤਰੀਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਸ਼੍ਰੇਸ਼ਠ! ਖ਼ਸ਼ਤਰੀ ਧਰਮ ਨੂੰ ਯਾਦ ਕਰਦਿਆਂ ਸ਼ੋਕ ਨਾ ਕਰ; ਇਹ ਸਾਰੇ ਖ਼ਸ਼ਤਰੀ ਆਪਣੇ-ਆਪਣੇ ਸ੍ਵਧਰਮ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ ਹੀ ਮਾਰੇ ਗਏ ਹਨ।
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vyāsa urges the king to restrain grief by recalling kṣatriya-dharma: in a righteous war, death accepted in the line of one’s duty is framed as ‘according to svadharma,’ and thus should not become a cause for paralyzing remorse.
In Śānti Parva’s post-war setting, the king is overwhelmed by sorrow and moral anguish over the slaughter. Vyāsa addresses him directly, offering consolation and a dharma-based justification: the fallen warriors met death while engaged in the duty they themselves bore as kṣatriyas.