Shloka 44
Bhīṣma–Karṇa Saṃvāda on the Śaraśayyā (भीष्म–कर्ण संवादः शरशय्यायाम्)
तावकानां जये भीष्मो ग्लह आसीद् विशाम्पते । तत्र हि द्यूतमासक्तं विजयायेतराय वा,प्रजानाथ! उस युद्धरूपी जूएमें आपके पुत्रोंकी ओरसे विजयके लिये भीष्मको ही दाँवपर लगाया था। इस प्रकार वहाँ विजय अथवा पराजयके लिये रणद्यूत उपस्थित हो गया
tāvakānāṁ jaye bhīṣmo glaha āsīd viśāmpate | tatra hi dyūtam āsaktaṁ vijayāyetarāya vā, prajānātha |
Sinabi ni Sanjaya: “O panginoon ng bayan, sa usapin ng tagumpay para sa iyong mga anak, si Bhishma ang itinuring na pusta sa sugal na iyon. Sapagkat doon, gaya ng laro ng dice, ang labanan ay naging nakatali sa dalawang hantungan—tagumpay o pagkatalo; ang digmaan mismo’y naging pagsusugal, at ang buhay at tungkulin ay isinapalaran alang-alang sa pag-asang manalo.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames war as a form of gambling: leaders may treat human lives and moral duty as stakes for victory. It implicitly critiques the ethical blindness of pursuing triumph through reckless wagering—especially when the ‘stake’ is a venerable protector like Bhishma and, by extension, the lives of many.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that, on the Kaurava side, Bhishma was effectively ‘put up as the wager’ for winning the war. The battlefield is portrayed as a dice-game where the outcome is either victory or defeat, highlighting the perilous, gamble-like nature of the conflict.