Shloka 22
Bhīma–Draupadī Saṃvāda on Restraint, Protection, and the Kīcaka Threat
Virāṭa-parva, Adhyāya 20
यस्या: पुर:सरा आसनू् पृष्ठतश्नानुगामिन: । साहमद्य सुदेष्णाया: पुर: पश्चाच्च गामिनी,जिसके आगे और पीछे बहुत-से सेवक रहा करते थे, वही मैं अब रानी सुदेष्णाके आगे और पीछे चलती हूँ
yasyāḥ puraḥsarā āsan pṛṣṭhataś cānugāminaḥ | sāham adya sudeṣṇāyāḥ puraḥ paścāc ca gāminī ||
Die Frau, vor der einst viele Diener wie Herolde hergingen und hinter der ein Gefolge folgte—heute bin ich eben diese Frau, die nun vor und hinter Königin Sudeṣṇā einhergeht.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the instability of worldly status and the ethical strength of bearing hardship without abandoning inner dignity. It points to humility and resilience as dharmic responses when fortune turns.
A woman who formerly moved with a large retinue now describes her changed condition: she walks as an attendant to Queen Sudeṣṇā, indicating a dramatic shift from former honor to present service during a period of concealment and adversity.