Sanjaya frankly speaks to Dhritarāṣṭra at this time saying that Arjuna, who is the most noble minded, the most compassionate, the eternal well-wisher and the most virtuous;

although frequently fraught with difficulties along with his four brothers, instigated by thee and thy son, including horrid acts of treachery against them with intent to kill,

such as attempting to burn them all alive in a specially made house of combustible lac, administering poison and other unworthy deeds as well.

It is surely known to you that by Arjuna the destruction of all your clan is certain due to the fact that he has the support of the Parama Puruṣa, Krishna Himself, by his side.

He felt weak, overcome by his love and extreme compassion for his relatives. He was also filled with fear, not knowing what was Dharma(righteous) and what was Adharma (unrighteous). His mind was distracted by grief at the thought of losing his relatives.

So he cast aside his bow and arrow and sat down on the floor of the chariot as if to fast to the death.

43 'By such transgressions on the part of the destroyers of the family, leading to caste-intermingling, the caste's and the family's immemorial rites-and-customs are annihilated.

44 'And for such men-with the family's rites-and-customs annihilated-there ensues, O World-destroyer, an assured habitation in Hell, as we have heard.

45 'Woe and alas! We are engaged in committing heinous sin in that, out of lust for kingdom and pleasures, we are striving to slay our own kindred!

46 'If Dhṛitarāṣṭra's sons, weapons in hand, should, in battle, slay me, weaponless and unresisting, that were happier for me.' (257)

'See Lord, there gets committed one more sin here in that the immemorial rites-and-customs get annihilated by sinful contagion. Just as an unfortunate fire in one's house, consumes also the surrounding houses, in the same way those, that establish contact with sinful families, also get similarly affected by the contact of the sinful.' Arjuna said, 'The whole family getting affected by various sorts of sins is damned to suffer dreadful Hell; and once one gets there, there is never any escape from there and in this way, the fallen family suffers throughout all eternity.' Arjuna added, 'O Chakrapāṇi, why have you become as hard-hearted as a stone and why do you not pay attention to all I have said? Why should I not abandon this faulty thing, knowing that the motive with which the enjoyment of the kingdom is to be expected is all transitory? O Keshav, is it a small sin already committed that I viewed all these elders with the idea that they were to be killed? I cannot commit the dreadful sin of killing my own kinsmen. I would prefer death to bearing such sorrow.' In this manner, seeing on the battle-field all his own kinsmen, Pārtha expressed his feelings that the kingdom was nothing more than a suffering Hell.

'Utsannakuladharmāṇām manuṣyāṇām janārdana narake'-niyataṁ vāso bhavatityanuśuśruma'—God has endowed man, with discretion and the right to perform, new deeds, hence, he is free to perform good or bad actions. He should use discretion in performing actions. But he being captive of greed, of pleasure etc., does not use his discretion and acts against the ordinance of scriptures, and family-traditions. Consequently, he is criticised, insulted and looked down upon, in this life and suffers tortures of hell for a long time, in the life to come. This is, what we have heard from our elders and ancestors.

In the word 'Manuṣyāṇām' the clan-destroyers and all other

members of the race, including ancestors of the race-destroyers viz., manes and their descendants, have been included.

*Link:—In the verse that follows, we are told how Arjuna was influenced by the description of disastrous consequences of fighting a battle.*

देवा अवधारी आणिक एक । एथ घडे महापातक । जै संगदोषें हा लौकिक । भ्रंशु पावे ॥ २५७ ॥

जैसा घरीं आपुला । वानिवसे वन्ही लागला। तो आणिकांही प्रज्वळिला । जाळुनि घाली ॥ २५८ ॥

तैसिया तया कुळसंगती । जे जे लोक वर्तती । तेही बाधु पावती । निमित्तें येणें ॥ २५९ ॥

तैसें नाना दोषें सकळ । अर्जुन म्हणे तें कुळ । मग महाघोर केवळ । निरय भोगी ॥ २६० ॥

पडिलिया तिये ठायीं । मग कल्पांतीही उगंडु नाही । येसणें पतन कुळक्षयीं । अर्जुन म्हणे ॥ २६१ ॥

देवा हें विविध कानीं ऐकिजे । परि अझुनिवरी त्रासु नुपजे । हृदय वज्राचें हें काय कीजे । अवधारी पां ॥ २६२ ॥

अपेक्षिजे राज्यसुख । जयालागीं तें तंव क्षणिक । ऐसे जाणतांही दोख । अव्हेरू ना ॥ २६३ ॥

हे वडिल सकळ आपुले । वधावया दिठी सूदले । सांग पां काय थेकुलें । घडले आम्हा ॥ २६४ ॥

(1.257) हे देव! और भी सुनिए, इसमें एक और महापाप लगता है। वह यह है कि दुःसंग के कारण लोकाचार भी नष्ट हो जाता है।

(1.258) जैसे दैववशात् अपने घर में आग लगे तो वह प्रज्वलित हो दूसरे घरों को भी जला डालती है,

(1.259) वैसे ही उस कुल की संगति में जो लोग बर्तते हैं उन्हें भी उसके निमित्त पीड़ा सहनी पड़ती है।

(1.260) इस प्रकार अर्जुन ने कहा कि अनेक पापों के कारण वह सब कुल केवल महा घोर नरक भोगता है,

(1.261) और वहाँ पतन होने पर उसका कल्पान्त में भी छुटकारा नहीं होता। कुलक्षय से ऐसा अधःपात होता है!

(1.262) हे देव! यह बात बहुत कुछ कान से सुनते हैं परन्तु अभी तक त्रास नहीं उपजता। यह हृदय वज्र का है, क्या किया जाय? देखिए,

(1.263) जिस बात के लिए राज्य-सुख की इच्छा की जाय वह क्षण में नाश होने वाली है, वह जान कर भी दोष नहीं छोड़े जाते। (1.264) हमने इन सब श्रेष्ठ जनों को मारने के लिए अपनी दृष्टि के सामने खड़ा किया है, कहिए तो भला हमारे पास किस बात की कमी है?

'उत्सन्नकुलधर्माणाम्...अनुशुश्रुम'*—भगवान्ने मनुष्यको विवेक दिया है, नया कर्म करनेका अधिकार दिया है। अतः यह कर्म करनेमें अथवा न करनेमें, अच्छा करनेमें अथवा मन्दा करनेमें स्वतन्त्र है। इसलिये इसको सदा विवेक-विचारपूर्वक कर्तव्य-कर्म करने चाहिये। परन्तु मनुष्य सुखभोग आदिके लोभमें आकर अपने विवेकका निरादर कर देते हैं और राग-द्वेषके वशीभूत हो जाते हैं, जिससे उनके आचरण शास्त्र और कुलमर्यादाके विरुद्ध होने लगते हैं। परिणामस्वरूप इस

लोकमें उनकी निन्दा, अपमान, तिरस्कार होता है और परलोकमें दुर्गति, नरकोंकी प्राप्ति होती है। अपने पापोंके कारण उनको बहुत समयतक नरकोंका कष्ट भोगना पड़ता है। ऐसा हम परम्परासे बड़े-बूढ़े गुरुजनोंसे सुनते आये हैं।

'मनुष्याणाम्'—पदमें कुलघाती और उनके कुलके सभी मनुष्योंका समावेश किया गया है अर्थात् कुलघातियोंके पहले जो हो चुके हैं—उन (पितरों)-का, अपना और आगे होनेवाले-(वंश-) का समावेश किया गया है।

सम्बन्ध—युद्धसे होनेवाली अनर्थ-परम्पराके वर्णनका खुद अर्जुनपर क्या असर पड़ा ? इसको आगेके श्लोकमें बताते हैं।