Verse 1.40
कुलक्षये प्रणश्यन्ति कुलधर्माः सनातनाः ।
धर्मे नष्टे कुलं कृत्स्नमधर्मोऽभिभवत्युत ॥
Transliteration
kulakṣaye praṇaśyanti kuladharmāḥ sanātanāḥ |
dharme naṣṭe kulaṃ kṛtsnamadharmo'bhibhavatyuta ||
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · @indic-transliteration/sanscript 1.3.3
Translation
In the destruction of a family, the immemorial religious rites of that family perish; on the destruction of spirituality, impiety, indeed, overcomes the whole family.
From the owner's sheet · +1 more
When a family is destroyed, its ancient family traditions perish; and when dharma is lost, adharma overcomes the whole family.
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08 · +1 more
Word by word
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08
Explanation
Arjuna widens his argument to society. When families are destroyed, their long-standing customs, kuladharma, the rites and duties handed down through generations, are lost. Without dharma to sustain it, the family falls under adharma, disorder. In the world of the epic, the family was the bearer of religious and social life, so its destruction meant more than loss of lives. Arjuna is speaking from within the values of his time, and the verse shows that his concern extends to the continuity of tradition, not only to individuals.
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08