Shloka 25

Duryodhana’s Post-Duel Lament and Instructions (भग्नसक्थस्य विलापः)

Devanagari script

तस्या: प्रसादनं वीर प्राप्तकालं मतं मम । कश्च तां कोधताम्राक्षीं पुत्रव्यसनकर्शिताम्‌

Transliteration

tasyāḥ prasādanaṃ vīra prāptakālaṃ mataṃ mama | kaś ca tāṃ krodhatāmrākṣīṃ putravyasanakarśitām ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: „O Held, nach meinem Urteil ist jetzt der rechte Augenblick, ihre Besänftigung zu suchen und ihre Gunst zu gewinnen. Denn wer könnte jene Frau beruhigen—deren Augen vor Zorn gerötet sind, die vom Unglück ihres Sohnes zermürbt wurde?“

Word by Word

तस्याःof her

प्रसादनम्appeasement, pacification

वीरO hero

प्राप्तकालम्timely, at the proper time

मतम्considered, thought

ममmy

कःwho

चand

ताम्her

क्रोधताम्राक्षीम्whose eyes are reddened with anger

पुत्रव्यसनकर्शिताम्worn down by the calamity of (her) son

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

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 underscores ethical prudence: when someone is overwhelmed by grief and anger, the proper response is timely conciliation rather than confrontation. It recognizes the psychological force of bereavement and advises choosing the right moment and method to restore calm.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana offers counsel to a addressed ‘hero’: he judges that the present moment calls for appeasing a woman who is furious and deeply afflicted by her son’s misfortune, implying that her emotional state makes her difficult to pacify unless approached with tact and at the right time.