Shloka 2
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पश्चात्तापः तथा वनप्रस्थानानुज्ञा | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Remorse and Request for Forest-Retirement
मन्दप्राणगतिर्धीमान् कृच्छादिव समुद्रहन् । पदाति: स महीपालो जीर्णो गजपतिर्यथा,उस समय उनकी चलने-फिरनेकी शक्ति बहुत कम हो गयी थी। वे बुद्धिमान् भूपाल बूढ़े हाथीकी भाँति पैदल चलते समय बड़ी कठिनाईसे पैर उठाते थे
mandaprāṇagatir dhīmān kṛcchād iva samudvahan | padātiḥ sa mahīpālo jīrṇo gajapatir yathā ||
বৈশম্পায়নে ক’লে—সেই ধীমান ৰজাৰ প্ৰাণগতি মন্দ হৈ পৰিছিল; তেওঁ কষ্টে কষ্টে আগবাঢ়িছিল। সেই মহীপাল এতিয়া পদব্ৰজে, জীর্ণ গজপতিৰ দৰে, খোজ তুলিবলৈও কঠিন বোধ কৰিছিল।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical and spiritual reminder central to the Mahābhārata: worldly authority and strength are transient. Old age reduces even a king to frailty, encouraging humility, acceptance of consequences, and a turn toward detachment and renunciatory values.
The narrator describes the king’s physical decline: his breath and strength are weak, and he walks with great effort, compared to an old elephant leader. It sets the tone for the forest-dwelling, end-of-life phase characteristic of the Āśramavāsika narrative.