batch.motif.hindu-mahabharata-dutt-gutenberg-l3821-l3930
---
record_id: batch.motif.hindu-mahabharata-dutt-gutenberg-l3821-l3930
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
passage_locator:
label: BOOK VI / GO-HARANA / BOOK VII / UDYOGA; lines 3821-3930
start: '3821'
end: '3930'
translation: Maha-bharata
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: '"Spot that needle''s point can cover not unto them be given!"'
summary: A sequence of speeches in a Kuru council warns Duryodhan against war, laments
the destruction that would follow, urges him to accept Krishna's peace, and ends
with Duryodhan defending his claims and refusing to yield any part of the Kuru
realm to the sons of Pandu.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: An unnamed ancient warrior states that Arjun and Krishna are foes Duryodhan
cannot conquer.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Vidura says he grieves for Duryodhan's father, the aged Kuru queen, and survivors
who will be left homeless, friendless, and kinless after war.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Dhrita-rashtra is described with tear-filled sightless eyes and an aged body
shaken by anguish.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Dhrita-rashtra urges Duryodhan to avoid fatal strife, seek Yudhishthir's friendship,
accept Krishna's counsel, and let hatred cease.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Duryodhan sits in the council hall proud and wrathful before speaking to Krishna
and the Kuru warriors.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: Duryodhan accuses Krishna, his father, Vidura, Bhishma, and Drona of hatred
toward him and affection toward the Pandavs.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Duryodhan argues that Yudhishthir lost his empire and freedom through gambling
and then lost again before exile.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: Duryodhan says warriors who die in battle will find heaven's golden portals
open and that a Kshatra does not yield to foes.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: Duryodhan declares that Indra-prastha shall not return to Yudhishthir while
he and his brothers live.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: Duryodhan says no town, village, market, hamlet, or spot the size of a needle's
point will be given to the sons of Pandu.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Duryodhan
description: Kuru prince addressed by counsellors and speaking in the council hall;
he refuses to yield land to the sons of Pandu.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Vidura
description: A counsellor who speaks gently and laments the grief that war will
bring to the Kuru family.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Dhrita-rashtra
description: Aged, sightless Kuru monarch and Duryodhan's father who pleads for
peace.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Krishna
description: Dwarka's chieftain and Devaki's son, described as resistless in war
and as offering righteous counsel of peace.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Arjun
description: A mortal warrior whom the speaker says no one on earth conquers in
fight.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Yudhishthir
description: A son of Pandu associated with the lost empire, gambling, exile, and
the claim to Indra-prastha.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Pandavs / sons of Pandu
description: The rival kin group whose claim to a portion of the Kuru empire is
rejected by Duryodhan.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Bhishma
description: A Kuru elder named by Duryodhan among those he says turn cold glances
on him; also invoked as greater than the bright gods.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Drona
description: A warrior/preceptor named by Duryodhan among those he says oppose him
and as one who leads them in war.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Karna
description: An archer named by Duryodhan as true and bold among his warlike supports.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: war-refusing claimant
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Duryodhan refuses to yield Indra-prastha or even a needle-point of land to
the sons of Pandu.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:2
label: speaker accused of pride and wrath
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage describes Duryodhan as proud and wrathful in the council hall.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: peace counsellor or elder adviser
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:8
- fig:9
basis: Vidura, Dhrita-rashtra, Krishna, Bhishma, and Drona are presented as advisers
or elders whose words or stance oppose Duryodhan's course; Dhrita-rashtra explicitly
urges peace and Krishna is said to counsel peace.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:4
label: grieving father-king
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Dhrita-rashtra is Duryodhan's father, sightless and anguished, pleading with
his son to avoid war.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: formidable warrior
assigned_to:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
basis: The passage describes Krishna and Arjun as unconquerable or resistless and
names Bhishma, Drona, and Karna as major warlike powers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- id: role:6
label: rival claimant or dispossessed kin
assigned_to:
- fig:6
- fig:7
basis: Yudhishthir and the sons of Pandu are associated with the lost realm, exile,
and the demand for a portion of the Kuru empire.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: bird bereft of plumage
literal_form: 'A simile for future Kuru survivors: like a bird without plumage,
pining and dying.'
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: death's black shadows
literal_form: Black shadows of grief and death that Dhrita-rashtra warns Duryodhan
not to cast on his parents' final life.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: heaven's golden portals
literal_form: Golden portals of heaven opened for Kshatra warriors slain in battle.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:4
label: bed of arrows
literal_form: A gory battlefield death described as a bed of arrows without sting
for warriors.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:5
label: needle's point
literal_form: The smallest spot of land Duryodhan says will not be given to the
sons of Pandu.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Warning against unconquerable foes
summary: An elder voice warns Duryodhan that Arjun and Krishna cannot be conquered
and leaves the decision to him as Kuru king.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Vidura's lament
summary: Vidura speaks gently and imagines the grief of Duryodhan's parents and
the wandering misery of surviving kin after war.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Dhrita-rashtra's plea for peace
summary: The aged blind king, shaken with anguish, asks Duryodhan to accept Krishna's
peaceful counsel and reunite the Kurus through love.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Duryodhan's defense and accusation
summary: Duryodhan accuses Krishna and Kuru elders of hostility, denies blame for
Yudhishthir's losses, invokes warrior duty, and refuses to yield land.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: rejected counsel of peace before dynastic war
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: Vidura, Dhrita-rashtra, and Krishna's peace counsel is set against Duryodhan's
refusal to yield land or accept reconciliation.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy has no exact 'rejected counsel' motif; 'wisdom'
is used only for the counsel aspect.
- id: motif:2
label: contested royal inheritance and refusal to partition a kingdom
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: The passage centers on Duryodhan's assertion that the Kuru realm is undivided
under Dhrita-rashtra and that no part should be restored to Yudhishthir or the
sons of Pandu.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: This is a political-royal motif in the passage, not a ritual or divine
legitimation scene.
- id: motif:3
label: warrior death as honorable passage to heaven
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Duryodhan says that Kshatra warriors slain in battle will have heaven's golden
portals opened and will feel no pain in the bed of arrows.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: No exact available taxonomy reference for heroic death or warrior afterlife
is supplied.
- id: motif:4
label: prophecy-like lament for ruined survivors
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Vidura describes future survivors as homeless, friendless, kinless wanderers
who curse the day of Duryodhan's birth.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage frames this as lamenting counsel rather than an explicit supernatural
prophecy.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 3821-3828
quote_or_summary: An elder voice says Arjun cannot be conquered in battle and Krishna
is resistless in war; these foes are not conquerable.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: Vidura's Speech, lines 3829-3844
quote_or_summary: Vidura says he grieves for Duryodhan's father and the aged Kuru
queen; he imagines sons, grandsons, friends, and kin slaughtered or wandering
homeless and friendless like a bird bereft of plumage.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: Dhrita-rashtra's Speech, lines 3845-3864
quote_or_summary: Dhrita-rashtra, sightless and tearful, urges Duryodhan to shun
fatal strife, accept Krishna's counsel of peace, seek Yudhishthir's friendship,
and unite the Kurus in love.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: Duryodhan's Speech, lines 3865-3882
quote_or_summary: Duryodhan sits proud and wrathful in council and accuses Krishna,
Dhrita-rashtra, Vidura, Bhishma, and Drona of hatred toward him and favor toward
the Pandavs.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: Duryodhan's Speech, lines 3883-3894
quote_or_summary: Duryodhan argues that Yudhishthir lost his empire and freedom
through gambling, was freed, played again, lost again, and went into exile.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: Duryodhan's Speech, lines 3895-3916
quote_or_summary: Duryodhan invokes Drona, Bhishma, and Karna, says Kshatra warriors
slain in battle reach heaven's golden portals, and declares that a Kshatra breaks
but does not yield.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: quote
locator: Duryodhan's Speech, lines 3917-3930
quote_or_summary: Duryodhan says Indra-prastha shall not return to Yudhishthir,
the Kuru realm shall not be split again, and not even a spot a needle's point
can cover will be given to the sons of Pandu.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/hindu/project-gutenberg/mahabharata-dutt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; brief quotation/summarized from public domain
text.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage is clear for speakers, counsel, refusal, and dynastic conflict.
Motif mapping is partly approximate because the available taxonomy does not include
exact categories for rejected counsel, heroic-warrior afterlife, or kin-war catastrophe.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage itself does not explicitly compare these events to another tradition or motif family beyond the supplied taxonomy mapping.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:hindu-mahabharata-dutt-gutenberg__l3821-l3930
passage_sha256=14ce25bd5cef901e959f631767fbc49e67aada0c1450229493d262117ea7219b