Shloka 26

Devanagari script

एवं चाधार्मिका: पापा: पठ्चाला भिन्नसेतव: । तानेवं भिन्नमर्यादान्‌ कि भवान्‌ न निगहति,इस प्रकार वे सब-के-सब पापी और अधार्मिक हैं। पांचालोंने भी धर्मकी मर्यादा तोड़ डाली है। इस तरह मर्यादा भंग करनेवाले उन पाण्डवों और पांचालोंकी आप निन्दा क्‍यों नहीं करते हैं?

Transliteration

evaṁ cādhārmikāḥ pāpāḥ pāñcālā bhinnasetavaḥ | tān evaṁ bhinnamaryādān kiṁ bhavān na nigṛhṇāti ||

Translation

Vậy thì người Pāñcāla cũng là kẻ tội lỗi và phi chính pháp—những kẻ đã phá vỡ cả bờ đê của trật tự đạo lý. Khi họ đã vượt rào, phá bỏ mọi giới hạn như thế, cớ sao ngài không ngăn trị họ?

Word by Word

एवम्thus, in this manner

चand

अधार्मिकाःunrighteous, irreligious

पापाःsinful, wicked

पाञ्चालाःthe Panchalas

भिन्नसेतवःthose whose boundary/bridge is broken; transgressors

तान्them

एवम्thus

भिन्नमर्यादान्those who have broken the bounds/limits

किम्why? / what (reason)?

भवान्you (honorific)

नnot

निगृह्णातिrestrains, checks, punishes

Speaker

कृप उवाच

Characters & Entities

Kṛpa

Pāñcālas

Pāṇḍavas

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames ethical judgment in terms of maryādā (moral limits): when a group is perceived to have violated dharma, the speaker argues that restraint and accountability (nigraha) are justified, even necessary, within a war-ethics context.

What is happening in the narrative?

Kṛpa is speaking amid the tense aftermath of the Kurukṣetra war (Sauptika Parva), criticizing the Pāṇḍavas and their allies the Pāñcālas as boundary-breakers and questioning why they are not being checked or condemned—an argument used to press for a retaliatory stance.