Shloka 83
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
अर्जुन: प्राह गोविन्द क्रुद्धः सर्प इव श्वसन् भगवान् श्रीकृष्णके इस प्रकार पूछनेपर अर्जुनने क्रोधमें भरकर फुफकारते हुए सर्पके समान युधिष्ठिरकी ओर देखकर श्रीकृष्णसे कहा--,त्वमित्यत्रभवन्तं हि ब्रूहि पार्थ युधिष्ठिरम् । त्वमित्युक्तो हि निहतो गुरुर्भवीति भारत पार्थ! तुम युधिष्ठिरको सदा आप कहते आये हो, आज उन्हें “तू” कह दो। भारत! यदि किसी गुरुजनको “तू” कह दिया जाय तो यह साधु पुरुषोंकी दृष्टिमें उसका वध ही हो जाता है
sañjaya uvāca | tvam ity atra bhavantaṃ hi brūhi pārtha yudhiṣṭhiram | tvam ity ukto hi nihato gurur bhavatīti bhārata ||
桑阇耶说道：“噢，帕尔塔啊！此处你当以‘tvam’（亲昵的‘你’）称呼由提施提罗，而不以恭敬的‘bhavān’相称。因为，噢，婆罗多啊！若以‘tvam’对一位可敬的长者或师长说话，正直之人便视之为等同于将其击倒、如同杀害。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Speech itself is an ethical act: the choice between honorific address (bhavān) and familiar address (tvam) can signify reverence or contempt. Toward elders and gurus, lowering the form of address is treated as a grave moral injury—symbolically equivalent to violence—because it violates the dharmic duty of respect.
Sañjaya reports a charged moment involving Arjuna and Yudhiṣṭhira: Arjuna is urged to address Yudhiṣṭhira with the familiar ‘tvam’ rather than the respectful ‘bhavān’. The line underscores how, in the epic’s moral world, a verbal slight to a revered person is considered as serious as physical harm.