Shloka 10

Rajo-dhūli-saṃmūḍha-saṅgrāmaḥ

The Dust-Obscured Battle and Mutual Charges

Devanagari script

वार्यमाणो मया नित्यं गान्धार्या विदुरेण च,मैंने, गान्धारीने और विदुरने तो सदा ही उसे मना किया है, जमदग्निपुत्र परशुरामने तथा महात्मा व्यासजीने भी उसे युद्धसे रोकनेका प्रयत्न किया है; तथापि कई, शकुनि तथा दुःशासनके मतमें आकर पापी दुर्योधन सदा युद्धका ही निश्चय रखता आया है। उसने पाण्डवोंको कभी कुछ नहीं समझा

Transliteration

vāryamāṇo mayā nityaṃ gāndhāryā vidureṇa ca, jamadagniputreṇa paraśurāmeṇa tathā mahātmanā vyāsena ca yuddhāt nivārayituṃ prayatnaḥ kṛtaḥ; tathāpi śakuni-duḥśāsana-matam āśritya pāpī duryodhanaḥ sadā yuddhasyaiva niścayaṃ kṛtavān. sa pāṇḍavān kadācana na kiñcid iva mene.

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra sprach: „Stets habe ich versucht, ihn zurückzuhalten, ebenso Gāndhārī und Vidura. Paraśurāma, der Sohn Jamadagni, und der großherzige Vyāsa suchten ihn ebenfalls vom Krieg abzubringen. Doch vom Rat Śakunis und Duḥśāsanas betört, hat der sündige Duryodhana immer wieder nur den Krieg beschlossen. Nie hat er die Pāṇḍavas für etwas geachtet.“

Word by Word

• {'vāryamāṇaḥ': 'being restrained, being held back (passive participle of √vṛ/√vār, ‘to prevent’)', 'mayā': 'by me', 'nityam': 'always, continually', 'gāndhāryā': 'by Gāndhārī', 'vidureṇa': 'by Vidura', 'jamadagniputraḥ': 'son of Jamadagni (epithet of Paraśurāma)', 'paraśurāmaḥ': 'Paraśurāma', 'mahātmā': 'great-souled, noble-minded', 'vyāsaḥ': 'Vyāsa', 'yuddhāt': 'from war', 'nivārayitum': 'to restrain, to prevent', 'prayatnaḥ': 'effort, attempt', 'tathāpi': 'nevertheless', 'matam': 'opinion, counsel, advice', 'āśritya': 'having resorted to, relying on', 'pāpī': 'sinful, wicked', 'duryodhanaḥ': 'Duryodhana', 'sadā': 'always', 'niścayaḥ': 'firm resolve, determination', 'pāṇḍavān': 'the Pāṇḍavas', 'na mene': 'did not consider, did not regard'}

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Gāndhārī
• Vidura
• Paraśurāma
• Jamadagni
• Vyāsa
• Śakuni
• Duḥśāsana
• Duryodhana
• Pāṇḍavas
• War (Kurukṣetra conflict)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even repeated guidance from elders and sages fails when a person clings to adharma and chooses corrupt counsel; moral responsibility lies in one’s deliberate resolve, not merely in receiving advice.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra laments that despite continuous attempts by himself, Gāndhārī, Vidura, Paraśurāma, and Vyāsa to stop Duryodhana from war, Duryodhana—under Śakuni and Duḥśāsana’s influence—remains fixed on fighting and dismisses the Pāṇḍavas.