Mahabharata 7.200.39 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 200, Shloka 39
तेषामपि हाधर्मेण चेष्टितं शृूणु यादृशम् । ओ मूर्ख! केवल धर्मसे ही युद्ध नहीं जीता जा सकता। उन कौरवोंकी भी जो अधर्मपूर्ण चेष्टाएँ हुई हैं, उन्हें सुन ले ।।
teṣām api hādharmena ceṣṭitaṃ śṛṇu yādṛśam | o mūrkha! kevalaṃ dharmasena hi yuddhaṃ na jītā śakyate | teṣāṃ kauravāṇām api yo ’dharmapūrṇaḥ ceṣṭāḥ saṃbhūtāḥ tāḥ śṛṇu ||
Dhṛṣṭadyumna disse: “Ouve também que espécie de conduta injusta eles praticaram. Ó tolo — a guerra não pode ser vencida apenas com o dharma. Escuta também os feitos dos Kauravas, as ações que empreenderam, encharcadas de adharma.”
धृष्टह्युम्न उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between moral ideals and battlefield realities: Dhṛṣṭadyumna argues that mere adherence to dharma may not secure victory when the opponent employs adharma, urging recognition of the Kauravas’ unrighteous conduct as part of the ethical debate on strategy.
In the Drona Parva’s war setting, Dhṛṣṭadyumna addresses an interlocutor sharply, insisting they listen to the Kauravas’ adharma-filled actions and asserting that war is not won by righteousness alone—framing a justification for harsher or more pragmatic measures.
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