Shloka 42
Vṛddha-kanyā-carita and Balarāma’s Kurukṣetra Inquiry (वृद्धकन्या-चरितम् / कुरुक्षेत्रफल-प्रश्नः)
तेषां क्षुधापरीतानां नष्टा वेदाभिधावताम्
teṣāṁ kṣudhāparītānāṁ naṣṭā vedābhidhāvatām
قال فَيْشَمْبَايَنَة: أولئك الرجال، وقد أحاطت بهم المجاعة وراحوا يهرولون طلبًا للقوت، ضاع منهم إدراك الڤيدا—ما حُفِظ من العلم وما فيه من صفاءٍ هادٍ. ففي غاية الاضطرار قد يُحجَب حتى العلم المقدّس، دلالةً على أن ألم الجسد يزعزع الانضباط وثبات السلوك القويم.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how severe physical deprivation—especially hunger—can overpower memory, discipline, and moral-spiritual orientation. It cautions that sustaining dharma often requires addressing basic human needs; otherwise, even learned people may lose clarity and restraint.
In the aftermath and strain of war, certain people are depicted as afflicted by hunger and rushing about for relief. In that desperate state, their Vedic learning/awareness is said to have been lost—an image of social and inner disintegration under extreme hardship.