Shloka 15
राजधर्मः—राष्ट्ररक्षणं, दण्डनीतिः, हयग्रीवोपाख्यानम्
Royal Duty: Protection, Penal Policy, and the Hayagrīva Exemplum
घ्नन्ति चान्यान् नरा राजंस्तानप्यन्ये तथा नरा: । संज्ैषा लौकिकी राजन् न हिनस्ति न हन्यते
ghnanti cānyān narā rājaṁs tān apy anye tathā narāḥ | saṁjñaiṣā laukikī rājan na hinasti na hanyate ||
毗耶娑说道：“大王啊，人杀他人，而那些人又被他人所杀。人中之主啊，这所谓‘杀与被杀’，不过是世间的名相。就真实而言，无人真正杀人，也无人真正被杀。”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes conventional speech from ultimate reality: in worldly terms people kill and are killed, but from the standpoint of the imperishable Self (ātman) there is no real slayer and no truly slain. This supports ethical reflection and detachment amid discussions of violence and duty.
Vyāsa addresses a king in the Śānti Parva’s instruction-setting, explaining the recurring cycle of violence in human society and reframing it through a metaphysical lens: ‘killing’ is a common-world label, while the deeper truth denies ultimate destruction of the Self.