Mahabharata · 7.60.28–29
॥
Devanāgarī
सो ऽहं तत्र गमिष्यामि यत्र सैन्धवको नृपः ॥
यियासुर् यमलोकाय मम वीर्यं प्रतीक्षते ॥
यथा परमकं कृत्यं सैन्धवस्य वधे मम ॥
तथैव सुमहत् कृत्यं धर्मराजस्य रक्षणे ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
so 'haṃ tatra gamiṣyāmi yatra saindhavako nṛpaḥ ||
yiyāsur yamalokāya mama vīryaṃ pratīkṣate ||
yathā paramakaṃ kṛtyaṃ saindhavasya vadhe mama ||
tathaiva sumahat kṛtyaṃ dharmarājasya rakṣaṇe ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सः अहम् तत्र गमिष्यामिsaḥ aham tatra gamiṣyāmiI will go there; I will go there
यत्र सैन्धवकः नृपःyatra saindhavakaḥ nṛpaḥwhere the Sindhu king; where the Sindhu king
यियासुः यमलोकायyiyāsuḥ yamalokāyawishing to go to the world of Yama; for whom, to the world of Yama
मम वीर्यम् प्रतीक्षतेmama vīryam pratīkṣateawaits my valor; awaits my valor
यथा परमकम् कृत्यम्yathā paramakam kṛtyamas the highest task; as the highest task
सैन्धवस्य वधे ममsaindhavasya vadhe mamafor me in slaying the Sindhu king; for me in slaying the Sindhu king
तथा एव सुमहत् कृत्यम्tathā eva sumahat kṛtyamso too the very great task; so too the great task
धर्मराजस्य रक्षणेdharmarājasya rakṣaṇein guarding the King of Dharma; in guarding the King of Dharma
Translation
"I will go there where the Sindhu king is — he who, as though wishing to go to the world of Yama, awaits my valor. As slaying the Sindhu king is my highest task, so equally great a task is guarding the King of Dharma."
Version
81a81a119810 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:36:52 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Arjuna is not so consumed by vengeance as to forget what matters most: "paramakaṃ kṛtyaṃ saindhavasya vadhe… tathā sumahat kṛtyaṃ dharmarājasya rakṣaṇe" — killing the enemy and preserving the king are, for him, equally great. Tellingly, in the hour of his personal vow he remembers the common good: protecting Dharmaraja is no less important than avenging the wrong. The verse teaches that the righteous do not let even holy anger eclipse duty: in fulfilling one's own task, one still tends to the whole; true valor keeps in view not only one's own goal but the safety of those on whom the cause depends.