Shloka 19
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय ८१: कृष्णस्य दूतप्रयाणम्
Udyoga Parva, Chapter 81: Krishna Sets Out as Envoy
जनार्दन! जैसे अवध्यका वध करनेपर महान् दोष लगता है, उसी प्रकार वध्यका वध न करनेसे भी दोषकी प्राप्ति होती है। यह बात धर्मज्ञ पुरुष जानते हैं ।।
janārdana! yathā avadhyakā-vadhe mahān doṣaḥ, tathā vadhyakā-vadhaṃ na kṛte ’pi doṣa-prāptiḥ. etad dharmajñāḥ puruṣā jānanti. yathā tvāṃ na spṛśed eṣa doṣaḥ, kṛṣṇa, tathā kuru. pāṇḍavaiḥ saha dāśārhaḥ sūñjayaiś ca sasainikaiḥ—śrīkṛṣṇa, yathā tvāṃ doṣo na spṛśet tathā prayatnaṃ kuru.
“Janārdana, assim como se incorre em grande falta ao matar quem não deve ser morto, do mesmo modo se incorre em falta ao deixar de matar quem deve ser morto. Os homens que conhecem o dharma compreendem isso. Portanto, ó Kṛṣṇa, age de tal maneira que essa culpa não te alcance. Ó Dāśārha, junto com os Pāṇḍavas, os Sṛñjayas e seus exércitos, e com os Yādavas e suas tropas, empenha-te, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, para que permaneças intocado por essa censura.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is not only about avoiding wrongful violence (killing the inviolable) but also about fulfilling necessary justice (not sparing the punishable). Both extremes can generate doṣa; therefore one must act so that righteous responsibility is met without moral stain.
Vaiśampāyana reports counsel directed to Kṛṣṇa: with the Pāṇḍavas, Sṛñjayas, and allied forces, he should undertake a course of action that avoids blame—navigating the impending conflict so that neither wrongful killing nor negligent inaction compromises dharma.