Mahabharata · Chapter 12.95
atha yo vijigīṣeta kṣatriyaḥ kṣatriyaṃ yudhi /
kastasya vijaye dharmo hyetaṃ pṛṣṭo bravīhi me //
bhīṣma uvāca /
sasahāyo'sahāyo vā rāṣṭramāgamya bhūmipaḥ /
brūyādahaṃ yo rājeti rakṣiṣyāmi ca vaḥ sadā //
mama dharmabaliṃ datta kiṃvā māṃ pratipatsyatha /
te coktamāgataṃ tatra ghṛṇīyuḥ kuśalaṃ bhavet //
te cedakṣatriyāḥ santo virudhyerankathañcana /
sarvopāyairniyantavyā vikarmasthā narādhipa //
aśastraṃ kṣatriyaṃ matvā śastraṃ gṛhṇātyathāparaḥ /
trāṇāyāpyasamarthaṃ taṃ manyamānamatīva ca //
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca /
athaḥ yaḥ kṣatriyo rājā kṣatriyaṃ pratyupāvrajet /
kathaṃ sampratiyoddhavyastanme brūhi pitāmaha //
bhīṣma uvāca /
nāsannahyo nākavaco yoddhavyaḥ kṣatriyo raṇe /
eka ekena bhāvyaśca visṛjeti kṣipāmi ca //
sa cetsannaddha āgacchetsannaddhavyaṃ tato bhavet /
sa cetsasainya āgacchetsasainyastamathāhvayet //
sa cennikṛtyā yudhyeta nikṛtyā pratiyodhayet /
atha ceddharmato yudhyeddharmeṇaiva nivārayet //
nāśvena rathinaṃ yāyādudiyādrathinaṃ rathī /
vyasane na prahartavyaṃ na bhītāya jitāya ca //
neṣurlipto na karṇī syādasatāmetadāyudham /
yathārthameva yoddhavyaṃ na kruddhyeta jighāṃsataḥ //
nāstyekasya gajo yuddhe gajaścekasya vidyate /
na padātirgajaṃ yudhyenna gatena padātinam //
hastinā yodhayennāgaṃ kadācicchikṣito hayaḥ / divyāstrabalasampannaḥ kāmaṃ yudhyeta sarvadā /
nāge bhūmau same caiva rathenāśvena vā punaḥ //
rāmarāvaṇayoryuddhe harayo vai padātayaḥ /
lakṣmaṇaśca mahābhāgastathā rājanvibhīṣaṇaḥ //
rāvaṇasyāntakāle ca rathenaindreṇa rādhavaḥ /
nijaghāna durācāraṃ rāvaṇaṃ pāpakāriṇam //
divyāstrabalasampanne sarvametadvidhīyate / devāsureṣu sarveṣu dṛṣṭametatpurātanaiḥ //
[sādhūnāṃ tu yadā bhedātsādhuścedvyasanī bhavet.] niṣprāṇo nābhihantavyo nānapatyaḥ kathañcana /
bhagnaśastro vipannaśca kṛttajyo hatavāhanaḥ /
cikitsyaḥ syātsvaviṣaye prāpyo vā svagṛhe bhavet /
nirvraṇaśca sa bhoktavya eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ //
tasmāddharmeṇa yoddhavyamiti svāyambhuvo'bravāt /
satsu nityaḥ satāṃ dharmastamāsthāya na nāśayet //
yo vai jayatyadharmeṇa kṣatriyo dharmasangaraḥ /
ātmānamātmanā hanti pāpo nikṛtijīvanaḥ //
karma caitadasādhūnāṃ sādhūnyo'sādhunā jayet /
dharmeṇa nidhanaṃ śreyo na jayaḥ pāpakarmaṇā //
nādharmaścarito rājansadyaḥ phalati gauriva /
mūlāni ca praśākhāśca dahansamadhigacchate //
pāpena karmaṇā vittaṃ labdhvā pāpaḥ prahṛṣyati /
sa vardhamānastenaiva pāpaḥ pāpe prasajjati //
na dharmo'stīti manvānaḥ śucīnavahasanniva / aśraddadhānaśca bhavedvināśamupagacchati
sa baddho vāruṇaiḥ pāśairamartyairavamanyate /
mahādṛtirivādhmātaḥ svakṛtenaiva vardhate /
tataḥ samūlo hriyate nadīkūlādiva drumā //
athainamabhinindanti bhinnaṃ kumbhamivāśyāni /
tasmāddharmeṇa vijayaṃ kośaṃ lipseta bhūmipaḥ //
Original text: Mahābhārata (southern recension) · Edition: Śrīman Mahābhāratam, ed. T. R. Krishnacharya and T. R. Vyasacharya, Nirnaya Sagar Press, Bombay 1906–1910; e-text by SARIT (Shrinivasa Varakhedi and others) · SARIT: Search and Retrieval of Indic Texts · SARIT (e-text) via Internet Archive · CC BY-SA 3.0