Shloka 38
Book 10, Adhyāya 12: Aśvatthāmā’s Request for the Cakra and the Brahmaśiras Context
“जब मैंने इस तरह पूछा, तब द्रोणकुमारने मुझे इस प्रकार उत्तर दिया--'श्रीकृष्ण! मैं आपकी पूजा करके फिर आपके ही साथ युद्ध करूँगा। प्रभो! मैं यह सच कहता हूँ कि मैंने इस देव-दानवपूजित चक्रको आपसे इसीलिये माँगा था कि इसे पाकर अजेय हो जाऊँ ।।
tvatto 'haṁ durlabhaṁ kāmam anavāpyaiva keśava | pratiyāsyāmi govinda śivenābhivadāsva mām ||
毗湿摩耶那说道：“我如此问他时，德罗那之子答我：‘凯沙瓦啊，纵使未能从你处得到我所求的这稀有恩赐，我也将返回。戈文达啊，至少赐我这一句：对我说——“愿你得吉祥。”’”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when one’s aim is ethically compromised, the conscience still seeks moral sanction. The verse highlights the tension between craving power for conflict and yearning for auspicious approval from a righteous authority—showing how devotion can be invoked to legitimize questionable intentions, and how true dharma cannot be reduced to mere verbal blessing.
Vaiśampāyana narrates Droṇa’s son speaking to Kṛṣṇa. Having asked for a rare boon (contextually, a powerful weapon/means to become ‘unconquerable’) and failing to obtain it, he declares he will depart. Yet he requests that Kṛṣṇa at least bid him ‘śiva’—a word of welfare—seeking an auspicious send-off despite the war-driven purpose behind his request.