Shloka 30
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय ५४: दुर्योधनस्य धृतराष्ट्रं प्रति बलप्रशंसन-युक्तः आश्वासनवादः
Duryodhana’s Reassurance and Force-Praise to Dhritarashtra
मेरी सम्पूर्ण सेनाको इन्द्र भी नहीं जीत सकते। स्वयम्भू ब्रह्माजी भी इसका नाश नहीं कर सकते ।। युधिष्ठिर: पुरं हित्वा पञ्च ग्रामान् स याचति । भीतो हि मामकात् सैन्यात् प्रभावाच्चैव मे विभो,प्रभो! युधिष्ठिर तो मेरी सेना तथा प्रभावसे इतने डर गये हैं कि राजधानी या नगर लेनेकी बात छोड़कर अब पाँच गाँव माँगने लगे हैं
duryodhana uvāca | merī sampūrṇāṃ senāṃ indro 'pi na jetum arhati | svayambhūḥ brahmāpi asyā nāśaṃ na kartum arhati || yudhiṣṭhiraḥ puraṃ hitvā pañca grāmān sa yācate | bhīto hi māmakāt sainyāt prabhāvāc caiva me vibho prabho | yudhiṣṭhiraḥ mama sainyāt prabhāvāc caiva bhītaḥ san rājadhānīṃ nagaraṃ vā parityajya idānīṃ pañca grāmān eva yācate ||
Duryodhana disse: “Nem Indra consegue vencer todo o meu exército; nem mesmo Brahmā, o Auto-nascido, pode destruí-lo. Yudhiṣṭhira, abandonando a exigência da cidade, agora suplica por cinco aldeias. Pois ele teme—teme as minhas forças e o meu poder. Assim, deixando de lado a conversa de tomar a capital, veio pedir apenas cinco aldeias.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how pride in power distorts moral perception: Duryodhana interprets a peace-seeking compromise (asking for five villages) as fear and weakness, revealing the ethical danger of arrogance and the refusal to yield even minimal justice.
During the peace negotiations before the great war, Duryodhana boasts that his army is unconquerable—even by gods—and claims that Yudhiṣṭhira has retreated from demanding the capital to requesting only five villages because he fears the Kaurava strength and Duryodhana’s influence.