Shloka 32

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

Devanagari script

त॑ रथं यादवश्रेष्ठ;: समारुहु परंतप:

Transliteration

taṁ rathaṁ yādavaśreṣṭhaḥ samāruhya parantapaḥ

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana sprach: Dann bestieg der Vornehmste der Yādavas jenen Wagen, während der Feindversenger sich zum Weitermarsch rüstete—ein Bild entschlossenen Handelns unter der sittlichen Schwere des Krieges, in dem die Pflicht durch disziplinierte Bereitschaft und nicht durch Zögern vorangetragen wird.

Word by Word

तत्that

रथम्chariot

यादवश्रेष्ठO best of the Yadavas

समारुहmount / ascend

परंतपO scorcher of foes

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Yādavaśreṣṭha (Kṛṣṇa)

Parantapa (heroic warrior, commonly Arjuna)

ratha (chariot)

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 disciplined readiness and purposeful action in a dharmic crisis: leadership and duty are expressed through calm, decisive preparation rather than wavering, even when the setting is ethically weighty like war.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that the foremost Yādava (typically Kṛṣṇa) mounts a chariot, while the foe-scorching hero (often Arjuna or a principal warrior) is poised to proceed, signaling an imminent movement or engagement in the battle sequence.