Shloka 31
Adhyāya 8: Saṃprahāra-varṇana and Bhīma–Kṣemadhūrti Dvipa-Yuddha
Combat Description and Elephant Duel
को मदन्य: पुमॉल्लोके न जह्यात् सूत जीवितम् । सूत! कुट॒म्बीजनों, सगे-सम्बन्धियों और मित्रोंके पराभवका यह समाचार सुनकर संसारमें मेरे सिवा दूसरा कौन पुरुष होगा, जो अपने जीवनका परित्याग न कर दे ।।
ko madanyaḥ pumāṁl loke na jahyāt sūta jīvitam | sūta kuṭumbījanān saga-sambandhīn mitrāṇāṁ ca parābhavasya etat samācāraṁ śrutvā saṁsāre mama vinā dvitīyaḥ kaḥ pumān bhavet yaḥ svajīvitaṁ na parityajet || viṣam agniṁ prapātaṁ ca parvatāgrād ahaṁ vṛṇe | na hi śakṣyāmi duḥkhāni soḍhuṁ kaṣṭāni sañjaya ||
Вайшампаяна сказал: «О возничий! Кто в этом мире — кроме меня — не отрёкся бы от жизни, услышав весть о поражении моего дома, моих родичей и друзей? Я предпочёл бы яд, огонь или прыжок с вершины горы. Ибо, о Санджая, я не смогу вынести этих тяжких, сокрушающих скорбей».
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how overwhelming attachment to one’s own side—family, kin, and friends—can drive a person into despair and self-destructive impulses. Ethically, it frames a dharmic tension: intense grief is human, yet choosing self-harm is portrayed as an extreme reaction to the reversals of war.
Vaiśampāyana reports a speaker addressing Sañjaya as ‘sūta’ after hearing news of the defeat of his people. The speaker declares that such tidings are unbearable and says he would rather die by poison, fire, or a fall from a mountain than endure the suffering.