कुलक्षये प्रणश्यन्ति कुलधर्माः सनातनाः ।धर्मे नष्टे कुलं कृत्स्नमधर्मोऽभिभवत्युत ॥
kulakṣaye praṇaśyanti kuladharmāḥ sanātanāḥ |dharme naṣṭe kulaṃ kṛtsnam adharmo 'bhibhavaty uta ||
- कुलक्षये · kulakṣaye
- on the destruction of the family
- प्रणश्यन्ति · praṇaśyanti
- perish, are destroyed
- कुलधर्माः · kuladharmāḥ
- family duties, clan rites
- सनातनाः · sanātanāḥ
- eternal, immemorial
- धर्मे · dharme
- when dharma
- नष्टे · naṣṭe
- is lost, perishes
- कुलम् · kulam
- the family
- कृत्स्नम् · kṛtsnam
- the whole
- अधर्मः · adharmaḥ
- unrighteousness, lawlessness
- अभिभवति · abhibhavati
- overpowers
- उत · uta
- indeed, moreover
“With the family's destruction perish its immemorial duties; and when dharma is lost, lawlessness overpowers the whole clan.”
— Original plain-language translation
Arjuna turns sociologist: war destroys not just men but the customs that held them — rites, duties, restraints. It is a genuine insight into how violence unravels a social fabric, and it deserves to be felt before it is answered.
— Reader's notes (original)