Shloka 73
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 71 — Kṣatra-dharma Counsel, Public Legitimacy, and Mobilization
सर्वथा त्वेतदुचितं दुर्बलेषु बलीयसाम् । अनादरोडविरोधश्व प्रणिपाती हि दुर्बल:
sarvathā tv etad ucitaṃ durbaleṣu balīyasām | anādaro 'virodhaś ca praṇipātī hi durbalaḥ ||
«Во всех отношениях таково то, что считается уместным у сильных по отношению к слабым: они не проявляют к ним уважения, а слабые даже не оказывают сопротивления. Поистине слаб тот, кто всегда готов склониться.»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse reflects a hard political-ethical observation: power often breeds disregard for the powerless, and weakness is marked by habitual submission and inability (or unwillingness) to resist. It implicitly warns that dignity and agency are essential to avoid being treated with contempt.
Yudhiṣṭhira is speaking during the Udyoga Parva’s tense pre-war negotiations and counsel, articulating a realistic assessment of how the strong tend to behave toward the weak and how the weak, by constant capitulation, invite further disregard.