Mahabharata — Ashramavasika Parva, Shloka 2236

अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal

Devanagari script

मुहूर्तमिव संचिन्त्य वचनायोपचक्रमे । अमित बुद्धिमान्‌ महर्षि व्यासके ऐसा कहनेपर महाराज धृतराष्ट्रने दो घड़ीतक विचार करके इस प्रकार कहना आरम्भ किया

Transliteration

muhūrtam iva sañcintya vacanāyopacakrame | amitabuddhimān maharṣiḥ vyāsaḥ ||

Translation

وبعد أن تفكّر هنيهةً، شرع في الكلام. ثم مضى الحكيم العظيم فياسا، ذو العقل الذي لا يُحدّ، في حديثه. (وفي السياق، يتوقّف دِهرتَراشترا لحظةً ليتروّى، ثم يتهيّأ للردّ بتدبّر لا باندفاع، مُبرزًا الثقل الأخلاقي للكلمة والقرار.)

Word by Word

• मुहूर्तम्: for a moment
• मुहूर्तम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुहूर्त
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• इव: as if / like
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

• सञ्चिन्त्य: having reflected
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-चिन्त्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Active

• वचनाय: for speaking / to speak
• वचनाय: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वचन
• Form: Neuter, Dative, Singular

• उपचक्रमे: he began / set about
• Type: Verb
• Root: उप-क्रम्
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Vyāsa
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical discipline of pausing to reflect before speaking. Deliberation (sañcintya) is presented as a mark of wisdom, especially when words carry moral and relational consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator indicates a brief pause of thought, after which the speaker begins to speak. In the surrounding context of Āśramavāsika Parva, Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s measured response and Vyāsa’s authoritative presence frame a serious exchange about duty, consequence, and the path after the war.