चेष्टमानं प्रतीघाते सभुजं मां सचक्षुषः ॥
मन्यध्वं मृतम् इत्य् एवम् एतद् वो बुद्धिलाघवम् ॥
युक्तो ह्य् अस्य प्रतीघातः कृतो मे कुरुपुंगवाः ॥
यत् तु पार्थेन मत्स्नेहात् स्वां प्रतिज्ञां च रक्षता ॥
सखड्गो ऽस्य हृतो बाहुर् एतेनैवास्मि वञ्चितः ॥
भवितव्यं च यद् भावि दैवं चेष्टयतीव च ॥
सो ऽयं हतो विमर्दे ऽस्मिन् किम् अत्राधर्मचेष्टितम् ॥
अपि चायं पुरा गीतः श्लोको वाल्मीकिना भुवि ॥
पीडाकरम् अमित्राणां यत् स्यात् कर्तव्यम् एव तत् ॥
ceṣṭamānaṃ pratīghāte sabhujaṃ māṃ sacakṣuṣaḥ ||
manyadhvaṃ mṛtam ity evam etad vo buddhilāghavam ||
yukto hy asya pratīghātaḥ kṛto me kurupuṃgavāḥ ||
yat tu pārthena matsnehāt svāṃ pratijñāṃ ca rakṣatā ||
sakhaḍgo 'sya hṛto bāhur etenaivāsmi vañcitaḥ ||
bhavitavyaṃ ca yad bhāvi daivaṃ ceṣṭayatīva ca ||
so 'yaṃ hato vimarde 'smin kim atrādharmaceṣṭitam ||
api cāyaṃ purā gītaḥ śloko vālmīkinā bhuvi ||
pīḍākaram amitrāṇāṃ yat syāt kartavyam eva tat ||
"Me, still with an arm, struggling to resist, you who have eyes deem dead — just so; in this is your shallowness of mind. But as for the fact that Partha, out of love for me and guarding his own vow, took his arm together with the sword — by this very thing I have been cheated of vengeance. And whatever is to be, is destined, and fate, as it were, drives everything; he now lies slain in this clash — what unrighteousness has been done here? And there is also this verse, sung of old by Valmiki upon the earth: 'That which causes harm to enemies — that alone is what ought to be done.'"
198d894c26a9 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:25:13 PM UTC
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Satyaki piles up justifications — a vow, fate, a verse of Valmiki: where conscience is uneasy, arguments multiply. It is telling that the last of them reads, "whatever harms the enemy, do it": a rule of expedience set above a rule of honor. The verse teaches that a heap of justifications betrays the shakiness of a deed; and substituting expedience for dharma — "harm the enemy by any means" — is the very garb he himself had just accused others of wearing, for vengeance will always find scripture to suit it.