Shloka 3
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 188 — Draupadī-Vivāha Dharma-Vicāra
Debate on the Legitimacy of One Wife for Five
अवरोप्येह वृक्ष तु फलकाले निपात्यते । निहन्मैनं दुरात्मानं योड्यमस्मान् न मन्यते,“यह वृक्ष लगाकर अब फल लगनेके समय उसे काटकर गिरा रहा है। अतः हमलोग इस दुरात्माको मार डालें; क्योंकि यह हमें कुछ नहीं समझ रहा है
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: avaropyeha vṛkṣaṃ tu phalakāle nipātyate | nihanmainaṃ durātmānaṃ yo 'dya asmān na manyate ||
เขาเหมือนปลูกต้นไม้ไว้ที่นี่ แต่กลับโค่นมันลงในยามที่ถึงคราวออกผล ฉะนั้นเราจงกำราบสังหารคนใจชั่วผู้นี้เถิด เพราะวันนี้เขามิได้เห็นหัวพวกเราเลย
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical tension: anger and the urge for violent retribution arise when someone acts destructively and shows contempt. It implicitly invites reflection on whether perceived disrespect and harm justify immediate violence, a recurring Mahābhārata concern in discerning dharma amid provocation.
A speaker (reported by Vaiśampāyana) describes someone who planted a tree and is now cutting it down at the very moment it would bear fruit. Interpreting this as a malicious, contemptuous act, the group proposes killing him because he does not ‘regard’ them.