Mahabharata 9.65.36 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 65, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

इष्टापूर्तेन दानेन धर्मेण सुकृतेन च । अद्याहं सर्वपञ्चालान्‌ वासुदेवस्य पश्यत:

Transliteration

iṣṭāpūrtena dānena dharmeṇa sukṛtena ca | adyāhaṃ sarvapañcālān vāsudevasya paśyataḥ ||

Translation

“ఇష్టాపూర్తాలు, దానాలు, ధర్మం, సుకృతం—ఇవన్నీ సాక్షిగా నేను శపథం చేస్తున్నాను: ఈ రోజు వాసుదేవుడు చూస్తుండగానే, అన్ని ఉపాయాలతో, సమస్త పాంచాలులను యమలోకానికి పంపిస్తాను.”

Word by Word

• इष्टापूर्तेन: by (my) iṣṭa-and-apūrta (meritorious rites and public works)
• इष्टापूर्तेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: इष्टापूर्त
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• दानेन: by gift/charity
• दानेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: दान
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• धर्मेण: by righteousness/dharma
• धर्मेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• सुकृतेन: by good deeds/merit
• सुकृतेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुकृत
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• अद्य: today/now
• अद्य: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अद्य

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहम्
• Form: Nominative, Singular

• सर्वपञ्चालान्: all the Pāñcālas
• सर्वपञ्चालान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वपञ्चाल
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• वासुदेवस्य: of Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वासुदेव
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• पश्यतः: while (he) is seeing; in the presence of (him) watching
• Type: Verb
• Root: पश्यत्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa)
• Pāñcālas
• Yama (implied by 'Yama’s realm')

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the cultural weight of oaths sworn on one’s accumulated merit (iṣṭa, āpūrta, dāna, dharma, sukṛta). It also exposes an ethical tension: invoking righteousness and merit to authorize a vow of mass killing shows how dharma-language can be used to intensify warlike resolve, inviting reflection on the proper use (or misuse) of moral capital.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the midst of the Kurukṣetra war, a warrior (as reported by Sañjaya) makes a fierce vow: in Kṛṣṇa’s presence he will destroy the Pāñcālas and send them to Yama’s realm. The statement functions as a public challenge and a declaration of intent, escalating the conflict and signaling imminent violence against the Pāñcāla forces.