Shloka 8

राजधर्मः, दण्डनीतिः, कर्तृत्व-विचारः च

Royal Duty, Lawful Discipline, and the Question of Agency

Devanagari script

ते त्वया धर्महन्तारो निहता: सपदानुगा:

Transliteration

te tvayā dharmahantāro nihatāḥ sapadānugāḥ

Translation

ధర్మహంతకులు వారు నీ చేత తమ అనుచరులతో కూడ నిహతులయ్యారు.

Word by Word

• ते: they/those
• ते: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: त्वद्
• Form: Masculine/Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• धर्महन्तारः: slayers of dharma (destroyers of righteousness)
• धर्महन्तारः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्महन्तृ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• निहताः: killed/slain
• निहताः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि-हन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सपदानुगाः: together with their followers/attendants
• सपदानुगाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सपदानुग
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• you (addressee, implied)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames the killing of 'dharma-destroyers' as an ethically charged act aimed at re-establishing dharma; violence is not praised in itself, but evaluated by its relation to protecting moral and social order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vyāsa addresses the listener (implicitly a principal agent of the conflict) and states that the enemies characterized as violators of dharma have been slain, along with their supporters—marking a transition toward reflection on the consequences and duties after the war.