Shloka 20
Adhyāya 125: Raṅga-pradarśana — Arjuna’s Entry and Astric Demonstration (रङ्गप्रदर्शनम्)
कथं दीनस्य सततं त्वामासाद्य रहोगताम् | त॑ विचिन्तयत:ः शापं प्रहर्ष. समजायत,“वे तो उस शापका चिन्तन करते हुए सदा दीन और उदास बने रहते थे, फिर तुझको एकान्तमें पाकर उनके मनमें कामजनित हर्ष कैसे उत्पन्न हुआ?
kathaṁ dīnasya satataṁ tvām āsādya rahogatām | taṁ vicintayataḥ śāpaṁ praharṣaḥ samajāyata |
Kuntī sprach: „Er war doch stets niedergeschlagen und mutlos, weil er unablässig über jenen Fluch nachsann. Wie konnte, als er dich allein an einem verborgenen Ort fand, in seinem Geist eine vom Begehren geborene Freude aufsteigen?“
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical-psychological tension: a mind weighed down by remorse or fear of a curse is ordinarily joyless, yet desire can abruptly override sorrow and produce exhilaration. It implicitly warns that kāma (desire) can cloud judgment even under grave moral pressure.
Vaiśampāyana questions the plausibility and motive of a man’s sudden delight: although he was constantly dejected while contemplating a curse, upon encountering a woman alone in seclusion he experiences praharṣa (a thrill of joy), suggesting desire-driven excitement despite his ongoing distress.