Shloka 2
Adhyāya 60: Dāna vs. Yajña—Royal Giving, Protection, and Karmic Share
प्राप्प राज्यानि शतशो महीं जित्वाथ भारत । कोटिश: पुरुषान् हत्वा परितप्ये पितामह
prāpya rājyāni śataśo mahīṃ jitvātha bhārata | koṭiśaḥ puruṣān hatvā paritapye pitāmaha ||
یُدھِشٹھِر نے کہا— اے بھارت! زمین کو فتح کر کے میں نے سینکڑوں سلطنتیں پائیں؛ مگر کروڑوں مردوں کو قتل کر کے، اے پِتامہہ، میں ندامت کی آگ میں جل رہا ہوں۔
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical tension between political success and the moral cost of violence: even rightful victory and vast sovereignty can feel hollow when achieved through massive loss of life, prompting a dharmic inquiry into responsibility, atonement, and righteous rule.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Bhīṣma (called Bhārata and Pitāmaha), confessing that despite winning many kingdoms by conquering the earth, he is overwhelmed by grief and remorse for the innumerable deaths caused by the war, setting the stage for Bhīṣma’s counsel on dharma.