Shloka 21
Kṛṣṇasya Karṇam Prati Sāntvavacana
Kṛṣṇa’s Conciliatory Address to Karṇa
धैर्यवान् और जितेन्द्रिय ब्राह्मण जिनके सहायक हैं, उन उग्र तपस्वी वीर पाण्डवको तुम कैसे जीत सकोगे? ।।
dhairyavān ca jitendriya-brāhmaṇā yeṣāṁ sahāyakāḥ, tān ugrān tapasvino vīrān pāṇḍavān tvaṁ kathaṁ jeṣyasi? punar uktaṁ ca vakṣyāmi yat kāryaṁ bhūtim icchatā—suhṛdā majjamāneṣu suhṛtsu vyasanārṇave; yathā pūrvam uktam api, tathāpi tad ahaṁ punaḥ vakṣyāmi.
你又怎能征服那些英勇的般度族——苦行严峻、志气刚烈——他们背后还有坚忍自持的婆罗门为助？我将再一次陈说：凡求真实福祉者当行之事——当许多至交在灾厄之海中沉没之时，怀善意的朋友之责，便是在那一刻说出所必需之言。虽已说过，我仍要再说一遍。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A true well-wisher must speak necessary, dharma-aligned counsel when friends are overwhelmed by disaster, even if that counsel must be repeated; moral support (self-control, austerity, and brāhmaṇic guidance) is presented as a decisive strength.
Bhīṣma warns the Kuru side that defeating the Pāṇḍavas is unrealistic because they are formidable and backed by disciplined brāhmaṇas; he then announces he will restate practical counsel about what a friend should do when allies are drowning in misfortune.