Shloka 11

Chapter 26: Śoka-pratiṣedha, Hata-saṅkhyā, Gati-vibhāga, Pretakārya-ājñā

Restraint of Grief, Count of the Slain, Destinies, and Funerary Directives

Devanagari script

धृतराष्ट उवाच युधिष्ठिर गतिं कां ते गता: पुरुषसत्तम । आचक्ष्व मे महाबाहो सर्वज्ञों हसि मे मत:

Transliteration

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca

yudhiṣṭhira gatiṁ kāṁ te gatāḥ puruṣasattama |

ācakṣva me mahābāho sarvajño 'si me mataḥ ||

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra sprach: „O Yudhiṣṭhira, Bester der Männer, welchen Weg und welchen Zustand hast du erreicht? Sage es mir, du Mächtigarmiger; in meinen Augen bist du allwissend.“

Word by Word

धृतराष्ट्रःDhritarashtra

उवाचsaid

युधिष्ठिरO Yudhishthira

गतिम्course; state; destiny

काम्which?

तेof you; your

गताःgone; departed

पुरुषसत्तमO best of men

आचक्ष्वtell; declare

मेto me

महाबाहोO mighty-armed one

सर्वज्ञःall-knowing

असिyou are

मेmy; to me

मतःconsidered; regarded

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Yudhiṣṭhira

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 the ethical need for self-examination after catastrophe: a ruler must ask what ‘gati’ (course/state) one has reached—whether one’s mind, duty, and conduct remain aligned with dharma amid grief and responsibility.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Strī Parva’s mourning context after the great war, Dhṛtarāṣṭra addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and asks him to explain what state he has come to—seeking an account of Yudhiṣṭhira’s disposition and resolve, and treating him as a reliable, discerning knower.