Shloka 223
प्रियेभ्य: प्रकृतं साधु को नु स्वन्ततरो मया । “दूसरे राष्ट्रोपर आक्रमण किया और कितने ही राजाओंसे दासकी भाँति सेवाएँ लीं। जो अपने प्रिय व्यक्ति थे
priyebhyaḥ prakṛtaṃ sādhu ko nu svantataro mayā |
สัญชัยกล่าวว่า— “เราได้ยกทัพตีแคว้นอื่น บังคับกษัตริย์มากมายให้รับใช้ดุจทาส; กระนั้นต่อผู้เป็นที่รักของเรา เราก็ทำแต่ความดีเสมอ—แล้วใครเล่าจะมีจุดจบประเสริฐยิ่งกว่าเรา?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights moral self-assessment at the end of life: a person may justify harsh political actions (conquest and subjugation) by appealing to loyalty and beneficence toward one’s own loved ones, raising the ethical tension between private virtue and public wrongdoing.
Sañjaya reports a speaker’s reflective claim about his life and end: despite having waged aggressive campaigns and forced other rulers into servitude, he asserts that he consistently did good to his own dear ones and therefore considers his end unsurpassed.