घटोत्कचो यदि हन्याद् धि कर्णं; परो लाभः स भवेत् पाण्डवानाम् ॥
वैकर्तनो वा यदि तं निहन्यात्; तथापि कृत्यं शक्तिनाशात् कृतं स्यात् ॥
इति प्राज्ञः प्रज्ञयैतद् विचार्य; घटोत्कचं सूतपुत्रेण युद्धे ॥
अयोधयद् वासुदेवो नृसिंहः; प्रियं कुर्वन् पाण्डवानां हितं च ॥
ghaṭotkaco yadi hanyād dhi karṇaṃ; paro lābhaḥ sa bhavet pāṇḍavānām ||
vaikartano vā yadi taṃ nihanyāt; tathāpi kṛtyaṃ śaktināśāt kṛtaṃ syāt ||
iti prājñaḥ prajñayaitad vicārya; ghaṭotkacaṃ sūtaputreṇa yuddhe ||
ayodhayad vāsudevo nṛsiṃhaḥ; priyaṃ kurvan pāṇḍavānāṃ hitaṃ ca ||
"Should Ghatotkacha slay Karna — that would be a supreme gain for the Pandavas; or should Vaikartana slay him — even so the deed would be accomplished, by the loss of the dart. So the wise one [Krishna], having considered this with wisdom, set Ghatotkacha to fighting the son of the suta in battle — Vasudeva, the lion among men, doing what is dear to the Pandavas, and their good."
9775d1310c16 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:58:11 PM UTC
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Dhritarashtra himself unravels Krishna's fail-proof calculation: whatever the outcome of the duel, the Pandavas win. It is telling that the plan is built so that defeat within it is impossible. The verse teaches that the highest wisdom arranges matters so that good comes from every turn: not relying on a single outcome, it prepares victory out of any; and such is the design that turns even death itself — whosever it may be — to its own advantage.