Shloka 24
Chapter 15: Counsel on Initiative vs. Renunciation in the Rajasuya Project (सभापर्व, अध्याय १५)
षडशीति: समानीता: शेषा राजंश्षतुर्दश । जरासंधेन राजानस्तत: क्रूरं प्रवर्त्स्यते,राजन! जरासंधने सौमेंसे छियासी (प्रतिशत) राजाओंको तो कैद कर लिया है, केवल चौदह (प्रतिशत) बाकी हैं। उनको भी बंदी बनानेके पश्चात् वह क्रूर कर्ममें प्रवृत्त होगा
ṣaḍaśītiḥ samānītāḥ śeṣā rājan caturdaśa | jarāsandhena rājānas tataḥ krūraṁ pravartsyate ||
Kṛṣṇa nói: “Tâu Đại vương, Jarāsandha đã bắt giam tám mươi sáu vị vua; chỉ còn mười bốn vị. Khi hắn bắt nốt những người ấy, hắn sẽ càng lao vào những việc tàn bạo hơn nữa.”
कृष्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that when a ruler driven by cruelty faces no restraint, oppression escalates: after subduing many, he seeks to complete domination and then turns to even harsher acts. Ethically, it implies the duty of righteous kings to check adharma before it grows.
Kṛṣṇa informs the addressed king that Jarāsandha has already imprisoned eighty-six kings and that only fourteen remain free. He predicts that once Jarāsandha captures the rest, he will proceed to further cruel actions—heightening the urgency for intervention.