Shloka 38
Dāyavibhāga (Inheritance Apportionment) and Household Precedence — Dialogue of Yudhiṣṭhira and Bhīṣma
अहं विचित्रवीर्यस्य द्वे कन्ये समुदावहम् । जित्वा च मागधान् सर्वान् काशीनथ च कोसलान्
ahaṃ vicitravīryasya dve kanye samudāvaham | jitvā ca māgadhān sarvān kāśīnatha ca kosalān ||
Bhīṣma nói: “Vì hôn sự của Vicitravīrya, ta đã đem về hai công chúa của Kāśī—sau khi đánh bại toàn thể dũng sĩ xứ Magadha, chúa tể Kāśī, và các chiến binh Kosala.”
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds a classic Mahābhārata dilemma: actions justified as kṣatriya-dharma and service to lineage (securing a bride for the heir) can still carry moral ambiguity, especially when coercion and violence are involved. It invites reflection on how ‘duty’ and ‘right conduct’ may diverge in political life.
Bhīṣma recounts that, to arrange Vicitravīrya’s marriage, he went to Kāśī and carried off two royal daughters after defeating the assembled contenders—warriors from Magadha, the king of Kāśī, and fighters from Kosala—thus asserting Hastināpura’s claim through martial prowess.