Shloka 77
Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
द्रोणमासाद्य समरे ज्ञास्यसे हितमुत्तमम् । युध्यस्व ससुह्ृत् पापं कुरु कर्म सुदुष्करम्
droṇam āsādya samare jñāsyase hitam uttamam | yudhyasva sa-suhṛt pāpaṁ kuru karma suduṣkaram ||
三阇耶说道：“唯有在战场上逼近德罗那，你才会真正明白何为你至高的福祉。来吧——与扶持你的亲友并肩作战，并犯下那最难为之的罪：弑杀你自己的师长这一沉重之举。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dharma-crisis: in war, one may be driven toward actions that are both strategically necessary and morally grievous—here, the near-unthinkable act of harming one’s own guru. It frames ‘true welfare’ (hita) as something revealed through direct confrontation with reality, not mere speculation.
Sañjaya reports a hard-edged exhortation: the addressee is told to go before Droṇa in battle to discover what course truly serves his interest, to fight alongside allies, and to undertake the extremely difficult and sinful deed associated with killing the teacher Droṇa.