Shloka 28
अध्याय ९ — दुर्योधनस्य अन्त्यावस्था, विलापः, तथा सौप्तिक-प्रतिवृत्तम्
Duryodhana’s Final Condition, Lamentation, and the Night’s Report
'प्रभो! भरतनन्दन! वे वृष्णिकुलभूषण बलराम राजाओंकी सभामें सदा आपकी प्रशंसा करते हुए कहते थे कि “कुरुराज दुर्योधन गदायुद्धमें मेरा शिष्य है” ।। यां गतिं क्षत्रियस्याहु: प्रशस्तां परमर्षय: । हतस्याभिमुखस्याजौ प्राप्तस्त्वमसि तां गतिम्,“महर्षियोंने युद्धमें शत्रुका सामना करते हुए मारे जानेवाले क्षत्रियके लिये जो उत्तम गति बतायी है, आपने वही गति प्राप्त की है
prabho bharatanandana te vṛṣṇikulabhūṣaṇo balarāmo rājñāṁ sabhāyāṁ sadā tava praśaṁsāṁ kurvan evam āha—“kururājo duryodhano gadāyuddhe mama śiṣyaḥ” iti | yāṁ gatiṁ kṣatriyasyāhuḥ praśastāṁ paramarṣayaḥ | hatasyābhimukhasyājau prāptas tvam asi tāṁ gatim ||
Sañjaya disse: “Ó senhor, ó deleite dos Bhāratas! Balarāma, ornamento da linhagem dos Vṛṣṇis, sempre te louvava nas assembleias dos reis, declarando: ‘O rei Duryodhana dos Kurus é meu discípulo no combate com a maça.’ E o destino excelso que os grandes sábios recomendam para um kshatriya—aquele que é morto em batalha, de frente para o inimigo—esse mesmo destino tu alcançaste.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse affirms a classical kshatriya ideal: to meet the enemy directly and, if slain while confronting the foe, to attain a ‘praśastā gati’—a praised destiny—endorsed by seers. It also frames martial excellence within a lineage of instruction (Balarama as teacher), linking reputation, duty, and the ethics of facing battle without turning away.
Sanjaya addresses a Bharata prince and recalls how Balarama publicly praised Duryodhana in royal courts as his disciple in mace-fighting. He then declares that the addressee has attained the honored end described by sages for a warrior who dies in battle while facing the opponent.