Shloka 12
Chapter 59: Baladeva’s Censure, Keśava’s Restraint, and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Moral Accounting
पुनश्च राज्ञ: पतितस्य भूमौ सतां गदां स्कन्धगतां प्रगृहा । वामेन पादेन शिर: प्रमृद्य दुर्योधनं नैकृतिकं न्यवोचत्
punaś ca rājñaḥ patitasya bhūmau satāṃ gadāṃ skandhagatāṃ pragṛhya | vāmena pādena śiraḥ pramṛdya duryodhanaṃ naikṛtikaṃ nyavocat ||
Sañjaya disse: Então, tomando a maça que jazia junto ao ombro do rei caído ao chão, ele pressionou a cabeça de Duryodhana com o pé esquerdo e o chamou de homem enganoso e traiçoeiro.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how victory in war can slide into humiliation and moral condemnation. By calling Duryodhana “naikṛtika” (treacherous), the speaker frames the enemy’s downfall as ethically deserved, yet the act of trampling the head also invites reflection on restraint and propriety (dharma) even toward a defeated foe.
Sañjaya narrates that after Duryodhana has fallen, the victor seizes the mace lying against his shoulder and, pressing Duryodhana’s head with the left foot, addresses him with an insult—branding him deceitful and treacherous.