Shloka 54
पराजयश्न मरणान्मन्ये नैव विशिष्यते । यस्य स्याद् विजय: कृष्ण तस्याप्यपचयो ध्रुवम्
parājayaś ca maraṇān manye naiva viśiṣyate | yasya syād vijayaḥ kṛṣṇa tasyāpy apacayo dhruvam ||
اے کرشن! میں تو شکست کو موت سے کچھ بھی بہتر نہیں سمجھتا۔ جسے فتح ملتی ہے، اس کے لیے بھی زوال—مال و آدمیوں کا نقصان—یقینی ہے۔
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and practical cost of conflict: defeat feels like death, yet victory too brings inevitable loss (apacaya)—of people, wealth, and inner peace—so one should weigh war not only by outcomes but by its human and ethical consequences.
In Udyoga Parva, as war becomes imminent, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks to Kṛṣṇa with anxiety and moral reflection, arguing that neither defeat nor victory is truly desirable because even the victor must suffer heavy diminishment.