Shloka 2
Ādi Parva 117 — Pāṇḍu’s Obsequies, Escort of the Pāṇḍavas, and Reception at Nāgasāhvaya
Hastināpura
वैशम्पायन उवाच दुर्योधनो युयुत्सुश्न राजन् दुःशासनस्तथा । दुःसहो दुःशलश्चैव जलसंध: सम: सह:
vaiśampāyana uvāca
duryodhano yuyutsuś ca rājan duḥśāsanas tathā |
duḥsaho duḥśalaś caiva jalasaṃdhaḥ samaḥ sahaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: „O König, dies waren die Söhne Dhṛtarāṣṭras: Duryodhana; Yuyutsu; und ebenso Duḥśāsana; ferner Duḥsaha, Duḥśala, Jalasaṃdha, Sama und Saha.“ In dieser genealogischen Aufzählung beginnt das Epos, die Kaurava-Linie zu verzeichnen, und deutet voraus, wie ein gewaltiges Verwandtschaftsgeflecht—durch Geburt gebunden, durch Rivalität gespannt—später zum menschlichen Stoff von adharma und Krieg werden wird.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even before the war narrative unfolds, the epic stresses that moral collapse (adharma) arises within families and institutions: a long lineage and many heirs do not guarantee righteousness; character and choices do.
Vaiśampāyana, speaking to King Janamejaya, begins enumerating Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s children—starting with prominent Kaurava princes—setting the stage for later conflicts centered on these figures.