सो ऽब्रवीद् भीमकर्माणं भीमसेनम् अवस्थितम् ॥
वृकोदर न युक्तं ते वचनं वक्तुम् ईदृशम् ॥
क्षत्रियाणां बलं ज्येष्ठं योद्धव्यं क्षत्रबन्धुना ॥
शूराणां च नदीनां च प्रभवा दुर्विदाः किल ॥
सलिलाद् उत्थितो वह्निर् येन व्याप्तं चराचरम् ॥
दधीचस्यास्थितो वज्रं कृतं दानवसूदनम् ॥
आग्नेयः कृत्तिकापुत्रो रौद्रो गाङ्गेय इत्य् अपि ॥
श्रूयते भगवान् देवः सर्वगुह्यमयो गुहः ॥
क्षत्रियाभ्यश् च ये जाता ब्राह्मणास् ते च विश्रुताः ॥
आचार्यः कलशाज् जातः शरस्तम्बाद् गुरुः कृपः ॥
भवतां च यथा जन्म तद् अप्य् आगमितं नृपैः ॥
so 'bravīd bhīmakarmāṇaṃ bhīmasenam avasthitam ||
vṛkodara na yuktaṃ te vacanaṃ vaktum īdṛśam ||
kṣatriyāṇāṃ balaṃ jyeṣṭhaṃ yoddhavyaṃ kṣatrabandhunā ||
śūrāṇāṃ ca nadīnāṃ ca prabhavā durvidāḥ kila ||
salilād utthito vahnir yena vyāptaṃ carācaram ||
dadhīcasyāsthito vajraṃ kṛtaṃ dānavasūdanam ||
āgneyaḥ kṛttikāputro raudro gāṅgeya ity api ||
śrūyate bhagavān devaḥ sarvaguhyamayo guhaḥ ||
kṣatriyābhyaś ca ye jātā brāhmaṇās te ca viśrutāḥ ||
ācāryaḥ kalaśāj jātaḥ śarastambād guruḥ kṛpaḥ ||
bhavatāṃ ca yathā janma tad apy āgamitaṃ nṛpaiḥ ||
Duryodhana said: "Vrikodara, it is not fitting for you to speak such words; among kshatriyas strength is what matters most, and one should fight by valor. For the origins of heroes and of rivers, they say, are hard to trace: fire arose from water, and by it all is pervaded; from the bones of Dadhichi was made the vajra, destroyer of danavas; the god Guha is called son of Agni, son of the Krittikas, son of Rudra, son of Ganga. And brahmins born of kshatriya women are renowned; the teacher Drona was born from a vessel, the teacher Kripa from a clump of reeds; and what your own birth truly is — that too is known to kings."
ce4ae13f536f · प्रकाशित 12 जुल॰ 2026, 4:53:32 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Here, strange as it seems, the unrighteous Duryodhana utters what is just — that dignity does not lie in birth. It is telling that through a chain of examples (fire from water, the vajra from bones, the god Guha with many fathers, Drona from a vessel, Kripa from a clump of reeds) he proves that greatness is often born in unusual ways, and that judgment should rest on valor, not on origin. Here is one of the deepest truths of varnashrama-dharma rightly understood: true caste is determined by qualities and deeds (guna-karma), not by the womb alone. Telling, too, is the very irony: the right thought is spoken by a villain — but out of self-interest, in defense of an ally he needs — while the righteous Pandavas trample it underfoot. In this is a lesson in impartiality: truth can be heard even from unkind lips, and a good heart can err; therefore what is said should be weighed on its own merit, not by who said it. Thus Duryodhana, defending Karna out of calculation, unwittingly proclaims the law that stands above every caste — valor and quality.