Mahabharata 3.14.2 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 14, Shloka 2

Dyūta-doṣa-prakāśana — Kṛṣṇa’s Critique of Gambling and the Exile Crisis

Devanagari script

श्रीकृष्ण उवाच शाल्वस्य नगरं सौभं॑ गतो<5हं भरतर्षभ । निहन्तुं कौरवश्रेष्ठ तत्र मे शूणु कारणम्‌

Transliteration

śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca | śālvasya nagaraṃ saubhaṃ gato 'haṃ bharatarṣabha | nihantuṃ kauravaśreṣṭha tatra me śṛṇu kāraṇam ||

Translation

ศรีกฤษณะกล่าวว่า— “โอ้ผู้ประเสริฐแห่งภารตะ โอ้ผู้เลิศแห่งกุรุ! เราได้ไปเพื่อทำลายเมืองของศาลวะที่ชื่อ ‘เสาบหะ’ จงฟังเหตุจากเราเถิด”

Word by Word

• श्रीकृष्णः: Śrī Kṛṣṇa
• श्रीकृष्णः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रीकृष्ण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect (Paroksha-bhuta), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• शाल्वस्य: of Śālva
• Type: Noun
• Root: शाल्व
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• नगरम्: city
• नगरम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नगर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• सौभम्: Saubha (name of the city/vehicle)
• सौभम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सौभ
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• गतः: gone
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम्
• Form: क्त (past passive participle used actively), Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहम्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• भरतर्षभ: O bull among the Bharatas
• Type: Noun
• Root: भरतर्षभ
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• निहन्तुम्: to slay/destroy
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन्
• Form: तुमुन् (infinitive), Active (sense)

• कौरवश्रेष्ठ: O best of the Kauravas
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौरवश्रेष्ठ
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र

• मे: my
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद्
• Form: Genitive, Singular

• शृणु: hear
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु
• Form: Imperative, 2nd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• कारणम्: reason/cause
• कारणम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कारण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

श्रीकृष्ण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śrī Kṛṣṇa
• Śālva
• Saubha
• Bharatarṣabha (addressed listener, i.e., a Bharata prince)
• Kauravaśreṣṭha (addressed listener, i.e., a Kuru prince)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames Kṛṣṇa’s action as reasoned and accountable: even forceful acts like destroying an enemy stronghold are presented as grounded in a stated cause (kāraṇa), tied to the protection of one’s people and the restoration of order rather than mere impulse.

What is happening in the narrative?

Kṛṣṇa tells a Bharata/Kuru prince that he went to destroy Śālva’s city Saubha and invites him to hear the reason. In the surrounding story, Śālva’s hostility escalates after Śiśupāla’s death, leading to aggression against Dvārakā, prompting Kṛṣṇa’s response.