Shloka 37

Devanagari script

स गत्वा भ्रातरं शंखमार्तरूपो<ब्रवीदिदम्‌ | धृतदण्डस्य दुर्बुद्धेर्भवांस्तत्‌ क्षन्तुमहति,अपने भाई शंखके पास जाकर लिखितने आर्त होकर कहा--'भैया! मैंने दण्ड पा लिया। मुझ दुर्बुद्धिके उस अपराधको आप क्षमा कर दें”

Transliteration

sa gatvā bhrātaraṃ śaṅkham ārtarūpo 'bravīd idam | dhṛtadaṇḍasya durbuddher bhavāṃs tat kṣantum arhati ||

Translation

Als er zu seinem Bruder Śaṅkha gegangen war, sprach er in tiefem Kummer: „Bruder, ich habe die Strafe empfangen. Vergib mir jene Verfehlung, die ich aus Torheit beging.“

Word by Word

सःhe

गत्वाhaving gone

भ्रातरम्brother

शङ्खम्Śaṅkha (name)

आर्तरूपःhaving a distressed appearance

अब्रवीत्said/spoke

इदम्this

धृतदण्डस्यof (me) who has received/borne punishment

दुर्बुद्धेःof the foolish one (of me, the ill-minded)

भवान्you (honorific)

तत्that (offence/act)

क्षन्तुम्to forgive

अर्हतिis worthy/ought

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vyāsa

Śaṅkha

brother (bhrātṛ)

daṇḍa (punishment)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Acceptance of just punishment and sincere repentance are presented as ethical steps toward restoring dharma; the offender seeks forgiveness without excuses, acknowledging his own faulty judgment.

What is happening in the narrative?

A person, having been punished, goes to his brother Śaṅkha in distress and asks him to forgive the wrongdoing, emphasizing that the act arose from his own foolishness.