Shloka 24

दमयन्त्याः अरण्यविहारः — Damayantī’s Passage through the Wilderness

Devanagari script

एतद्‌ वाक्‍्यं नलो राजा दमयन्तीं समाहित: । उवाचासकृदार्तो हि भैमीमुद्दिश्य भारत,भारत! राजा नलने एकाग्रचित्त होकर बड़ी आतुरताके साथ दमयन्तीसे उपर्युक्त बातें बार-बार कहीं

Transliteration

etad vākyaṃ nalo rājā damayantīṃ samāhitaḥ | uvācāsakṛd ārto hi bhaimīm uddiśya bhārata ||

Translation

Da sprach König Nala, den Geist gesammelt und ganz auf eines gerichtet, diese Worte zu Damayantī. Wahrlich, im Herzen bedrängt, wandte er sich an Bhīmī (Damayantī) immer wieder, o Bhārata, und wiederholte sein Flehen in drängender Sehnsucht.

Word by Word

• {'etad': 'this', 'vākyaṃ': 'statement, speech, words', 'nalaḥ': 'Nala (the king of Niṣadha)', 'rājā': 'king', 'damayantīm': 'Damayantī (accusative

• the one addressed)', 'samāhitaḥ': 'collected, composed, concentrated (of mind)', 'uvāca': 'said, spoke', 'asakṛt': 'again and again, repeatedly', 'ārtaḥ': 'afflicted, distressed, anguished', 'hi': 'indeed, for', 'bhaimīm': 'Bhīmī

• daughter of Bhīma (epithet of Damayantī)', 'uddiśya': 'addressing, with reference to, intending (her)', 'bhārata': 'O Bhārata (address to the epic’s listener/descendant of Bharata)'}

Speaker

बृहृदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Nala
• Damayantī
• Bhārata (vocative address)
• Bhīmī (epithet of Damayantī)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid intense grief, one may strive for samāhita (mental composure). The verse contrasts Nala’s inner distress (ārtaḥ) with his effort to speak with focused mind, showing the ethical ideal of self-restraint under suffering while acknowledging human emotion.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Nalopākhyāna episode, Nala—tormented by circumstances—addresses Damayantī. He repeats his words multiple times, indicating urgency and emotional turmoil, while still attempting to remain mentally collected as he speaks to her.