Shloka 58
क्षत्रधर्मे प्रशस्तां हि प्राप्तोडस्मि परमां गतिम् । नैष धर्मो महीपाला: शरतल्पगतस्य मे
kṣatradharme praśastāṃ hi prāpto ’smi paramāṃ gatim | naiṣa dharmo mahīpālāḥ śaratālpagatasya me ||
புகழப்பட்ட க்ஷத்திரிய தர்மத்தினால் நான் பரம கதியை அடைந்தேன். அரசர்களே, அம்புகளின் படுக்கையில் கிடக்கும் எனக்கு இப்போது இது உரிய நடத்தைத் தர்மமல்ல.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts the glory of fulfilling kṣatriya-dharma—seen as leading to a ‘supreme destiny’—with the recognition that one’s appropriate conduct (dharma) changes with circumstance; a warrior’s active code is not the same when one is incapacitated and near death.
In the Bhīṣma Parva context, the speaker reports a reflection tied to the battlefield situation: the ideal of attaining the highest end through righteous warrior-duty is affirmed, yet it is also stated that such a code is not applicable for someone lying on a bed of arrows (a clear allusion to Bhīṣma’s condition).