Shloka 37
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 130: Kuntī’s Instruction on Rājadharma and Daṇḍanīti
प्रत्यक्षमेतद् भवतां यद् वृत्तं कुरुसंसदि । यथा चाशिटष्टवन्मन्दो रोषादद्य समुत्थित:
pratyakṣam etad bhavatāṃ yad vṛttaṃ kurusaṃsadi | yathā cāśiṭaṣṭavan mando roṣād adya samutthitaḥ ||
“สิ่งที่เกิดขึ้นในสภากุรุ ท่านทั้งหลายได้เห็นกับตาแล้ว—ว่าชายผู้เขลา ผู้นั้น วันนี้ลุกขึ้นด้วยโทสะ ประหนึ่งผู้ถูกตำหนิลงทัณฑ์”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores moral accountability in public life: when events are pratyakṣa—plainly witnessed by elders—anger-driven reactions and foolish posturing cannot be excused as ignorance. Public wrongdoing in the sabhā becomes a shared ethical concern, demanding discernment and restraint.
Vaiśaṃpāyana reminds the listeners that the incident in the Kuru court was seen directly by those present. He describes a “dull” person who, as if previously rebuked, has now risen in anger—signaling a tense turn in the assembly’s deliberations and the worsening atmosphere that leads toward conflict.