Shloka 15

Devanagari script

युधिछिर उवाच वर्षाणि द्वादशारण्ये त्रयोदशमुपस्थितम्‌ । तत्र नो नाभिजानीयुर्वसतो मनुजा: क्वचित्‌,युधिष्ठिर बोले--हम बारह वर्षतक वनमें रह चुके। अब तेरहवाँ वर्ष आ लगा है। अतः ऐसा वर दीजिये कि इसमें कहीं भी रहनेपर लोग हमें पहचान न सकें

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca varṣāṇi dvādaśāraṇye trayodaśam upasthitam | tatra no nābhijānīyur vasato manujāḥ kvacit ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Wir haben zwölf Jahre im Wald vollendet, und nun ist das dreizehnte Jahr herangekommen. Gewähre uns einen Segen, dass man uns in diesem Jahr, wo immer wir auch wohnen mögen, zu keiner Zeit erkennen kann.“

Word by Word

युधिष्ठिरःYudhiṣṭhira

उवाचsaid

वर्षाणिyears

द्वादशtwelve

अरण्येin the forest

त्रयोदशम्the thirteenth (year)

उपस्थितम्has arrived / has come

तत्रthere; in that (period/place)

नःus / our

नnot

अभिजानीयुःmay recognize

वसतःof (us) dwelling / while dwelling

मनुजाःpeople; men

क्वचित्anywhere; at any time

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

Yudhiṣṭhira

forest (araṇya)

the thirteenth year (trayodaśa-varṣa)

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 dharma as disciplined fidelity to one’s pledged terms: success depends not only on endurance (twelve years of exile) but also on careful conduct and restraint in the final year, ensuring the vow is fulfilled without provoking recognition.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira, mindful that the exile’s final condition is the thirteenth year of living unrecognized, asks for a boon or assurance that the Pandavas can reside anywhere during that year without being identified by people.