Shloka 31
Draupadī’s Exhortation on Rājadharma and Daṇḍa (द्रौपद्याः राजधर्मोपदेशः)
हत्वा राजसहस्राणि बहून्याशुपराक्रम: । तद् व्यर्थ सम्प्रपश्यामि मोहात् तव जनाधिप
hatvā rājāsahasrāṇi bahūny āśuparākramaḥ | tad vyarthaṃ samprapaśyāmi mohāt tava janādhipa ||
हत्वा राजसहस्राणि बहून्याशुपराक्रमः। तद्व्यर्थं सम्प्रपश्यामि मोहात्तव जनाधिप॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even extraordinary martial success can be judged as meaningless if it arises from moha (delusion) rather than dharmic clarity; ethical evaluation of action depends on motive, discernment, and consequence, not merely on power or victory.
The speaker (Vaiśampāyana, narrating) conveys a confession-like reflection addressed to a ruler: after killing innumerable kings with swift prowess, the speaker now recognizes those acts as futile, attributing the earlier course of action to delusion.