Shloka 18

अध्याय १५ (Āśramavāsika-parva): धृतराष्ट्रस्य वनवासानुज्ञायाचनम् — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s renewed plea for consent to forest-dwelling

Devanagari script

मुहूर्तमिव तु ध्यात्वा धर्मराजो युधिष्ठिर: । उवाच मातरं दीनश्रिन्ताशोकपरायण:,दो घड़ीतक कुछ सोच-विचारकर चिन्ता और शोकमें डूबे हुए धर्मराज युधिष्ठिरने मातासे दीन होकर कहा--

Transliteration

muhūrtam iva tu dhyātvā dharmarājo yudhiṣṭhiraḥ | uvāca mātaraṃ dīnaś cintāśokaparāyaṇaḥ ||

Translation

Nachdem er einen Augenblick lang nachgesonnen hatte, sprach Dharmarāja Yudhiṣṭhira, von Sorge und Kummer überwältigt, in demütigem, schmerzvollem Ton zu seiner Mutter.

Word by Word

मुहूर्तम्for a moment

इवas if/like

तुbut/indeed

ध्यात्वाhaving reflected/meditated

धर्मराजःKing of Dharma (Dharmaraja)

युधिष्ठिरःYudhishthira

उवाचsaid/spoke

मातरम्to (his) mother

दीनःwretched/afflicted

चिन्ताwith anxiety

अशोकपरायणःwholly devoted to sorrow (absorbed in grief)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Yudhiṣṭhira (Dharmarāja)

Mother (Kuntī, implied by context)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights ethical introspection: before speaking, Yudhiṣṭhira pauses to reflect, yet his mind is dominated by grief and anxiety. It suggests that moral speech and action should arise from deliberation, while also portraying how sorrow can weigh upon even a dharma-centered ruler.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that Yudhiṣṭhira, after a brief period of thought, addresses his mother in a distressed state. This functions as a transition into Yudhiṣṭhira’s forthcoming words—likely a question, concern, or decision shaped by the painful post-war circumstances.