Shloka 15
राजधर्मः—राष्ट्ररक्षणं, दण्डनीतिः, हयग्रीवोपाख्यानम्
Royal Duty: Protection, Penal Policy, and the Hayagrīva Exemplum
घ्नन्ति चान्यान् नरा राजंस्तानप्यन्ये तथा नरा: । संज्ैषा लौकिकी राजन् न हिनस्ति न हन्यते
ghnanti cānyān narā rājaṁs tān apy anye tathā narāḥ | saṁjñaiṣā laukikī rājan na hinasti na hanyate ||
Sinabi ni Vyāsa: “O Hari, pinapatay ng mga tao ang iba, at ang mga iyon ay pinapatay rin ng ibang tao. O pinuno ng sangkatauhan, ang ‘pagpatay’ at ‘pagkamatay sa kamay ng iba’ ay pawang katawagang pangmundo lamang. Sa katotohanan, walang tunay na pumapatay, at walang tunay na pinapatay.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes conventional speech from ultimate reality: in worldly terms people kill and are killed, but from the standpoint of the imperishable Self (ātman) there is no real slayer and no truly slain. This supports ethical reflection and detachment amid discussions of violence and duty.
Vyāsa addresses a king in the Śānti Parva’s instruction-setting, explaining the recurring cycle of violence in human society and reframing it through a metaphysical lens: ‘killing’ is a common-world label, while the deeper truth denies ultimate destruction of the Self.