Shloka 24

Virāṭa-sabhāyāṃ Saṃniveśaḥ — Assembly at Virāṭa’s Hall and Kṛṣṇa’s Diplomatic Counsel

Devanagari script

अज्ञायमाने च मते परस्य कि स्यात्‌ समारभ्यतमं मतं व: । तस्मादितो गच्छतु धर्मशील: शुचि: कुलीन: पुरुषो5प्रमत्त:,शत्रुपक्षका विचार जाने बिना आपलोग कोई ऐसा निश्चय कैसे कर सकते हैं? जिसे अवश्य ही कार्यरूपमें परिणत किया जा सके। अतः मेरा विचार है कि यहाँसे कोई धर्मशील, पवित्रात्मा, कुलीन और सावधान पुरुष दूत बनकर वहाँ जाय

Transliteration

ajñāyamāne ca mate parasya ki syāt samārabhyatamaṃ mataṃ vaḥ | tasmād ito gacchatu dharmaśīlaḥ śuciḥ kulīnaḥ puruṣo 'pramattaḥ ||

Translation

ప్రతిపక్షపు ఉద్దేశం తెలియని స్థితిలో మీరు కార్యరూపం దాల్చగలిగేలా ఏ నిర్ణయం తీసుకోగలరు? అందుచేత నా అభిప్రాయం ఇది—ఇక్కడి నుండి ధర్మనిష్ఠుడు, శుచితనంతో ప్రవర్తించే వాడు, కులీనుడు, అప్రమత్తుడైన పురుషుడు దూతగా అక్కడికి వెళ్లాలి.

Word by Word

{'ajñāyamāne''when (it is) not known

while remaining unknown', 'mate''in the opinion/intention

in the resolve', 'parasya''of the other (party/side)', 'kim syāt': 'how could it be? what would be possible?', 'samārabhyatamam': 'most fit to be undertaken

most actionable', 'matam''decision

settled view', 'vaḥ''of you (plural)', 'tasmāt': 'therefore', 'itaḥ': 'from here', 'gacchatu': 'let (him) go', 'dharmaśīlaḥ': 'one whose character is grounded in dharma', 'śuciḥ': 'pure

morally untainted', 'kulīnaḥ''well-born

of noble family', 'puruṣaḥ''man

person', 'apramattaḥ''careful

Speaker

श्रीकृष्ण उवाच

Characters & Entities

Śrī Kṛṣṇa

dūta (envoy/messenger)

para-pakṣa (the opposing party)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Sound action requires knowledge of the opponent’s intent; therefore, ethical and prudent diplomacy—sending a qualified, vigilant envoy—should precede any decisive step toward conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the opening counsel of Udyoga Parva, Krishna advises the assembly that they cannot finalize an actionable plan without understanding the opposing side’s stance, and he recommends dispatching a dharmic, pure, noble, and careful messenger to them.